The old enemy, at least in my particular corner of the earth are heading into the world cup on the back of what could have been described in some circles as some of the most dismal performances ever seen. Basically speaking what’s gone wrong with the once mighty English juggernaut. Can we write them off for RWC 2011?
Forwards
Lets start up front, England more than any of the other Home Nations sides are blessed with a core of great front row forwards, Sheridan is a beast in the purist sense of the word with cameos being made by the returning Stevens, Dan Cole and potentially the impressive Corbisiero. The real stars of the pack though can be found in the wheel house that is the 2nd row. Like or loathe him Courtney Lawes is an exceptional player, levels of raw athleticism aren’t often seen in the modern 2nd row and Lawes stands alone as probably the only World beating forward the English setup currently possesses. Back row wise the currently defining player is the absent Lewis Moody his race to fitness might be a huge defining factor for England’s World Cup, so balance in the back row will be an issue. There was an argument to bring the hard tackling Joe Worsley back into spot contention but Johnson has looked beyond the veteran and gone for a more youthful option. Admittedly Tom Croft is hard to look passed giving a great line out option and another runner in the loose. Whoever fills the 6 and 7 shirts I’d bet my house that the fulcrum of the back row is be Nick Easter. A naturally gifted ball handler (read also battering ram) he’s improved his passing and link play exponentially, he’s no slouch at ruck time but his lack of top of the line mobility will hamper him in ball poaching stats. All in all England could be described as solid but barring Lawes somewhat unremarkable…The phrase “workmanlike” was coined for men such as these.
Backs
When one looks at England’s backs things actually start to get interesting (I can hear the shocked gasps from here)…By interesting you could also mean controversial, confusing or down right stumping.
Lets start with the half backs, to me England’s scrum half is Ben Youngs pure and simple. Following on from where Harry Ellis prematurely left off Youngs combines top of the line distribution with that all important ability to keep a back line honest with good speed and the willingness to make a break. His understudy looks to be Richard Wigglesworth a similar player who lacks Youngs abrasive running ability. I however would prefer Paul Hodgson to be in the reckoning as I think he has much more impact as a game changer to accelerate the play and motivate a forward pack to in crass terms “get the finger out” Wigglesworth will sling a pretty pass, but boss a pack he may not.
Now at 10 we come to the great debate. Floody or Wilko? At the moment the court of public opinion seems to lie with the 2003 hero Wilkinson. But as is so often the case the public are utterly misguided. Wilkinson’s game is based on very simple mechanics, he is a ball control fly half. Using his boot and his domineering pack of forwards to move the play around and keep the game at a pedestrian pace. Wilko’s team will seek to grind the opposition into submission and not do much else. This may have been world beating in 03, but it isn’t now. Gone are the days of English up front domination, The South Africans, Aussies and Kiwis will all outdo them in that department. Hell even the Irish and French should be on par with them. So there has to be another way to win. Enter Toby Floody a solid if unspectacular goal kicker but an absolute game changer with ball in hand. Flood plays a game that sits comfortably in the current era and what’s more in the English back three he has the right weapons at his disposal to win games.
The real disappointment of the England side to me are their centres. These gentlemen look like they’d be comfortable dwelling beneath a bridge and bothering the billy goats gruff. Why Martin Johnson has persisted playing Happe, Tindell and Banahan is beyond me as for good or ill these men have all the cutting edge of a spoon. Where is the foil to be on Floods shoulder? Where is that midfield distributor ready to set players free…Potentially one may look to the baby bull elephant Manu Tuilangi. This hard running and hard hitting (just ask Christ Ashton and more recently David Wallace) is a rare diamond in the midfield rough. But the real question is who sets him free, against competent and organized defenses size can’t and won’t be enough. You’re no Lomu my young friend
When we move to the back three things start to improve for the Englishmen. Like him or loathe him Chris Ashton is one hell of a finisher (and would be a solid bet for tournament top try scorer) as he runs great support lines and is completely ruthless in his pursuit of anything that makes Chris Ashton look good (partially joking). On the other wing we’re sure to have Mark Cuetto, a man who’s quietly been scoring tries his whole career. The only point of debate is whether to give Delon Armitage his spot back. The answer in my books is a firm no with Ben Foden being my premiership player of the season and frankly making leinster look very ordinary at some points during the Heineken Cup final
Overall
It could go one of two ways really. If England commit to actually playing rugby they could potentially be extremely difficult to beat. This is of course assuming that they reduce their error count and can find the bloody mindedness to consistently generate quick ball. If they go the other direction they’ll grind out success for a while but come unstuck against top tier sides. We need to see the England team that put the Wallabies to the sword last Autumn. Not the England that stumbled at the last hurdle in the 6 Nations
Prediction
Lack of immediate success spreading the ball will prompt England to return to their dower past and get wailed on in a semi final
Johnson won't risk Tuilagi's inexperience in big games, so barring injury the England team is going to effectively be a 13 man team with no centers. The constant failure to develop a true number 12, partly due to the Premiership stifling creativity through the threat of relegation, coupled with leaving Flutey behind, will ultimately cost England dearly.
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