George Furbank did not expect England call-up

Northampton Saints fullback George Furtbank said he did not expect the England call-up in the Six Nations tournament earlier this year.

Furbank, who is a product of the Saints Academy has played 17 Premiership games for his club with all of it coming in the last two years but went on to make his England debut during the opening game of the Six Nations this year against France and also started in the subsequent game against Scotland.

In an exclusive interview to Sky Sports, the 23-year-old admitted that playing international rugby was a complete different experience from the domestic setup.

"I definitely didn't have my eyes on the England set-up or a call-up at all," Furbank told Sky Sports.

"My focus was on having a good season (with Northampton). I got into some form at the end of last season and I wanted to keep that going and push on at the start of the season.

"It's a massive step up from club rugby and very different from club rugby - especially from a club like Saints where we like to chuck the ball around, take a few calculated risks and stuff like that.

"International rugby is probably a lot more tactical and more about the kicking game, so I learned a lot about that.

"Then a bit of the mental side as well, like the ability to shut out outside noise, and be able to focus on the game and have a clear mind going into games."