Will Carling

William David Charles Carling (born 12 December 1965) is an English former rugby union player.

Since retiring, Carling has pursued interests including corporate speaking and punditry. In 2018 he joined the England coaching staff of Eddie Jones as a leadership mentor.

Early life and education The son of Lieutenant Colonel Bill Carling, an officer in the Royal Regiment of Wales, Carling was born in Bradford-on-Avon and educated at Terra Nova School in Cheshire and then Sedbergh School, on an army scholarship. He disliked being sent to prep school but showed an aptitude for rugby and played above his age group, arriving at Sedbergh – a "big rugby school" – with a reputation as a serious talent.

On 2 April 1983 he made his debut for England Schools in a 16–0 victory over Ireland. He narrowly missed out on a junior Grand Slam, with an England Schools side that included Kevin Simms, Victor Ubogu and Carling's future Durham and Harlequins teammate Andy Mullins, losing 13–12 to Wales. Carling was made captain of the rugby 1st XV in his final year at school, albeit for Lent term only. Having also shown some talent for cricket, he sought the additional captaincy of the cricket team, but lost out to Mark Alban. This meant the "occasional weekend exercise", but otherwise military activities were rather limited. Playing his first year at fullback, he had to accept a style of rugby that offered less creative freedom than he was used to.

"Caution was the watchword and it was not something I was used to. Instead of running everything, as you are encouraged to do in the idealistic world of schoolboy rugby, I was coached to kick, to play safety-first rugby."

Despite a less than stellar academic record, Carling had the opportunity to continue his education at the University of Cambridge and represent Cambridge University R.U.F.C., who had already recruited his Durham colleague Chris Oti. Carling did not follow up the invitation, believing it would be unethical to accept a place he had not earned. The new season offered good prospects for younger players, as league rugby was introduced for the first time, establishing a "proper system which rewarded progress"; Divisional Championships, which brought the best club players into regional teams, would not necessarily be the main method of selection in future.

In February 1987 Carling made his debut for Harlequins against the Metropolitan Police. He soon played for England B in a 22–9 win over France B. Carling sensed he had a chance of earning his first senior England cap when Kevin Simms, a former England Schoolboys teammate, was selected to play against Romania. As Carling knew the strengths and weaknesses of Simms and "wasn't in awe of him", expectation that he might match this achievement grew.

"...Simmsy was one of us. He unpicked the myth and also provided the motivation. If he could do it, then so could I. Maybe those blokes in the England side weren't so special after all."

Though still expected to pursue a military career, Carling abandoned these plans. As rugby was an amateur game at this point, he accepted an executive post with Mobil Oil to make ends meet. and in 2001 founded Will Carling Management Ltd, a corporate hospitality company which is also involved in the rugby social networking website 'Rucku'.

Personal life Carling is married to his second wife Lisa, the ex-wife of David Cooke; the couple have two children. Carling was married to the television presenter Julia Carling (née Smith) from 1994 to 1996. Prior to their divorce, he was romantically linked by some members of the press with Diana, Princess of Wales, the then-wife of Prince Charles. Carling has denied any such relationship.

Carling has an elder son, Henry, born in 1997, from his relationship with Ali Cockayne (the former sister-in-law of footballer, Gary Lineker) who he left for Lisa Cooke.

Carling, whose mother was diagnosed with breast cancer when he was an infant and later died from the disease, is a patron of the charity Breakthrough Breast Cancer.

Politics In August 2014, Carling was one of 200 public figures who were signatories to a letter to The Guardian opposing Scottish independence in the run-up to September's referendum on that issue.

Matches as captain

Honours as captain Rugby World Cup Runner-up: 1991

Five Nations Championship Champions: 1991 (Grand Slam and Triple Crown), 1992 (Grand Slam and Triple Crown), 1995 (Grand Slam and Triple Crown), 1996 (Triple Crown) Runners-up: 1989, 1990, 1994

Calcutta Cup Winners: 1989, 1991–1996 Runners-up: 1990

Millennium Trophy Winners: 1989–1992, 1995–1996 Runners-up: 1993–1994

Honours In 2021, World Rugby inducted Carling into its World Rugby Hall of Fame, alongside Osea Kolinisau, Humphrey Kayange, Huriana Manuel, Cheryl McAfee and Jim Telfer.