With Youngs amassing a record amount of England caps over 13 years, Tigers boss Cheika spent a lot of time analysing the scrum-half’s game as an opposition coach while at the helm of both Australia and Argentina.
It was against Cheika’s Argentina in 2023 that Youngs ended his international career, as England beat the Pumas in the third-place World Cup play-off in Paris.
The Australian coach could not help but laugh when asked what instructions he would give his players when trying to contain Youngs.
“Get him, bash him up, rip his head off and all those things,” Cheika chuckled when listing what sort of tactics it would take to try to nullify Youngs.
“You have to be alert because he can hurt you with his pass, he could hurt you with his running and hurt you with his kick. And he can still do that.”
Cheika described having one-club man Youngs on his side for the past 10 months as “a pleasure”, with the playmaker a valued figure in the dressing room as well as out on the pitch.
“He gives that bit of advice that he feels from around the group,” Cheika said.
“He has been great for us whenever he has either started or come off the bench. He has been super competitive, which has been great.
“I have a lot of respect for him as a player and now as a person after I’ve got to know him. And I hope we can keep that friendship into the future.”
