by There are weeks when the art of choosing becomes more about psychology than anything else. Put the data to one side for a second and think about the smallest players against the opposition. How can you get your team to be more positive and less weighed down by negativity? And, while doing so, send an extra frisson of excitement down the spines of your own fans when they see the team sheet?
So let’s huddle up tight and, ahead of the penultimate weekend of this Six Nations, consider what down-on-heels England should do next. Their last two games are against Ireland and France and, even taking into account the problems in the French camp, the time has come to change the mood at Twickenham. It is not enough to stick to what they have done so far.
Good riddance, then, to defeatism. Enough already of the downbeat predictions and the odds-motivated bookmakers’. Forget Scotland, the disappointment of Murrayfield and Ireland’s unbeaten reputation. All that matters – here, right now – is the next challenge for Steve Borthwick and his team. And, ideally, bringing a collective voice back to a slightly troubled Twickenham.
Related: England’s Danny Care’s contribution was praised as a century of caps emerged
Let’s start with the blindingly obvious. Perhaps the most frustrating aspect of English rugby – and, yes, it’s still a crowded field – is the total inability to put together a more attacking side from the various parts available. Sometimes you won’t see what would happen if there was so much mentality and every game was treated like a sudden death event. Make your peace now or never.
So who would you pick to scrummage for your life this weekend? For England, the answer is still Joe Marler and Dan Colewith Jamie George completing the front row. Everything flows from there and nobody is remotely suggesting that the experienced trio cannot stand firm against Ireland at home. It’s all about the here and now, remember, not some indistinct spot on a distant horizon.
Ireland are admittedly well-placed in the second tier, with Joe McCarthy and Tadhg Beirne having a chance to start a fast-rising Test Lions combo. But are we really saying England aren’t runners when it comes to scrum and lineout? That Maro Itoje flush is busted or that is the giant George Martin isn’t it a serious unit? Maybe that’s the talk of Borthwick’s team, right there.
Shift Ollie Chessum with the blind side of the scrum and – bingo – England also have another excellent option in an area where Ireland had some problems against Great Britain. Which brings us to the main areas of the back, halfbacks and midfield. For whatever reason England have been bothering Nos 7 to 13 for years. The balance rarely felt optimal, good players were injured at inopportune moments and, as a result, the collective was rarely successful.
So, in the absence of an unavailable Tom Curry, who might want to play against the smaller goaltender? Exhibit A is England’s 2020 autumn Nations Championship win over Ireland when England made an extraordinary 246 tackles – missing just nine – to upset Ireland’s superb finish and possession percentages? Sam Underhill it was crucial then and can be so again.
That leaves No 8. It would be great to drop the equally motivated Alfie Barbeary or Zach Mercer but neither have made the wider squad. Then again, Ben EarlThe pace of the coin was key to England’s slick first effort against Scotland and their “little win” mini-contests have previously eliminated Ireland. Choose him again, tell him to go out and go out and play the super Doris and see what happens.
England’s back line will also need some physical thunder, as well as more creative spark. As England took into account Alex Mitchell and Marcus Smith in his squad for this game, it must be assumed that both are fully fit. If so, they start side by side Manu Tuilagi at 12, on the grounds that none of them were in Scotland and they can all ask proactive questions about their contrary numbers. Fin Smith, so good for Northampton against Munster in January, makes the bench.
The rest is a matter of balance, once again. Henry Slade he may not have thrived at 13 in Scotland but he and Tuilagi love playing together and Slade’s booming left-back provides an extra outlet for the two Smiths. That, in turn, diminishes the need for Elliot Daly’s versatility and leaves the door open for exciting excitement. Manny Feyi-Waboso.
Who is more likely to score the opportunistic goals that Duhan van der Merwe scored at Murrayfield: Feyi-Waboso or Daly? It’s time to give Calvin Nash’s first run and invite Tommy Freeman to get stuck in James Lowe. At fullback, meanwhile, there’s no point picking George Furbank and then briefly ditch him.
At his best, Furbank can be the kind of total influence that Hugo Keenan had on Ireland. He will also bring the game to Ireland, rather than sit back and wait for visiting mistakes. Recent history suggests that there won’t be many of them.
The tribunal? Chandler Cunningham-South has been nothing but a reed from the start and who better, in theory, than Luke Cowan-Dickie and Ellis Genge to betray the green machine? Seeing Danny Care tick on his 100th cap would also be sure to get the home support on his back in red. Good enough to put up with the best of the Six Nations? Maybe not, but at least Twickenham could stage a truly exciting contest.
The Premier League remains in the winter
Remember the Gallagher Premiership? The last time anything happened in the league was at the end of January and the next game in anyone’s diary will be on March 22nd. There’s a difference between a mid-winter break and an almost complete hibernation, and that’s where the English men’s club game is at the moment (casual camaraderie aside). The overarching idea was to allow a clear run to the Six Nations – something that might have been vaguely possible if the national team had succeeded in filling the void. In practice, the gap is far too long and for casual fans, out of sight generally means out of mind. Club rugby is already struggling for eyeballs and, if it happens, losing the Six Nations from free-to-air TV will be another huge blow. And the final masterstroke? The same weekend the Premier League returns (Northampton are leading the table, for those wondering) the women’s Six Nations kicks off. Rugby union is trying to market itself better – and ensure it has the best players in the league more regularly – but its roster remains as large as ever.
Go with the flow
Talking about the future profile of the game, World Rugby announced that it wants to “reimagine the spectacle and increase rugby’s share of attention within an increasingly competitive global sports and entertainment market”. Of the recommendations made by the Shape of the Game forum in London last week, many are long overdue: action against croc rolls, re-examining the breakdown from a player welfare perspective and streamlining the game’s disciplinary process. The main focus, however, will be on improving the flow of the game – a slightly different measure to ball-in-play time. This includes stricter enforcement of the “use it” call around box kicks, expanding the terms of reference of the shot clock, revising the offside kick law (to reduce boring “tennis kicking”) and ways to finding to increase scrum-half. space and protection at the base of scrums, rucks and scrums. They may all sound like small things but, collectively, they have the potential to make a huge difference.
Still want more?
Chandler Cunningham-South might be one of England’s hottest prospects but the Quins boss still gets WhatsApp messages from his dad, he tells Aaron Bower.
Ireland’s green machine is two wins away from achieving the first Six Nations double slam. Why are they so dominant, asks Michael Aylwin.
Sam Peters looks at how schools are tackling the sports head injury crisis.
Jack Snape reports on the Super Round in Melbourne and Super Rugby is in flux.
Memory lane
On this day in 1988, England beat Scotland 9-6 at Murrayfield before both teams brought forward players on a night out in Edinburgh. The next morning, they found the Calcutta Cup bent out of shape. John Jeffrey was banned from Scotland for six months, with Dean Richards receiving a one-match ban, after the trophy was thrown and kicked around Princes Street. “It was badly damaged,” Richards later admitted, and the Scottish Rugby Union revealed it would cost more than £1,000 to repair.
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