South African and former Leicester Tigers head coach Heyneke Meyer believes Tom Youngs is adapting to life as a hooker "better and quicker then he expected".
Meyer was the man who told the 25-year-old to make the unlikely move from centre to hooker when he was in charge at Welford Road in 2009.
Soon after encouraging Youngs to make that drastic change, Meyer was forced to leave Leicester and return to South Africa to care for his terminally ill in-laws.
Youngs, meanwhile, began reinventing himself as a hooker and learning all about the hugely technical side of life in the front row.
Three years later, last Saturday, Youngs made his third start for England against Meyer's Springbok side and the South African said he had been hugely impressed by Youngs' progress.
"It takes time to adapt to playing in a different position but he is doing it much better and quicker than I thought he would," said Meyer, inset.
"I am so happy for him that he is playing Test-match rugby because, when I left Leicester, I was wondering whether I had done the right thing. I was wondering if I had wrecked his career.
"He took two steps back to try to move forward and, for that, I have a lot of respect for him."
Meyer said he asked Youngs to make the almost unheard of switch from centre to hooker because he had all of the physical and mental attributes to make it a success
"I didn't think Tom was big enough or had enough speed to be a centre," said Meyer. "But he had ball-carrying ability, the heart and commitment.
"At the time, I thought England needed ball carriers. I said to him that he was tough enough and it would just be about putting the time into training on the technical side of the position.
"He has a mental toughness, which you need, and he has the build and mentality of a hooker. I am really happy for him.
"I hope everyone is not too tough on him. It is a huge move from centre to hooker.
"You only get experience by playing and making mistakes. They have to stick with him. Tom was brilliant against us in the way that he carried the ball and took it to us."
Meyer's side came out on top at Twickenham 16-15 to complete an unbeaten tour of the northern hemisphere and he said he really enjoyed meeting up with some of the Tigers players he used to coach.
"As England came out in the second half, I was walking from the changing room feeling under pressure and Youngsy came over and gave me a pat on the back and then ran off," said Meyer.
"The bond you have with the players as a coach is great and it is something I really enjoy."
