Pool A Analysis – England from thedeadballarea on Vimeo.
Since starting this article Australia have dispatched Fiji, in what I felt was reasonably comfortable fashion. Sure they never nailed the bonus point, but they never looked like they’d lose the game despite Fiji staying in touch throughout.
The result of the game means Australia sit 3rd in the group and we’re starting to see how the teams stack up, so I thought it’d be a good time to continue our look at the teams in pool A, and this time out I thought we’d take a look at England ahead of their crunch game against Wales and their chances of topping the group.
To be honest anything will be an improvement on England’s last World Cup campaign – as an England supporter it was depressing to watch. The off field antics, the on field apathy, to be perfectly honest it was a sweet relief when they crashed out in the Quarter finals. I’m proud of my country but it was deserved.
Four years on though there is a real sense things have changed, and hope around the team. I think deep down people realise England are a few years from really challenging the best teams on a consistent basis, but there is certainly a belief that England can give a good account of themselves in this home world cup.
I guess that stems from the fact that over those four years there has been a lot of change from England, both in personnel and how they play the game. It hasn’t always worked out, but there has certainly been a concerted effort to change their style and this has lead to an interesting development arc over the last four years.
In some ways England have been an example of consistency, 2nd in the six nations three years on the bounce in with a shout in all of them. But conversely, despite a couple of good wins they’ve never quite been able to get to a position where the expectation is they will beat the SH teams.
I’m certainly never confident we’ll put any of the big three away, and often enter these games with the wish that we just give a good account of ourselves rather than a deep down feeling that we’ll probably win.
But things are changing, and England fans are starting to expect more, especially in the style of play.
Lancaster understands you have to have an all court game in this day and age, and despite England sometimes unfairly getting labelled a one dimensional team; big forwards set piece orientated, the real issue for England has been how they combine the traditional power game of England of old with a more fluid and dynamic game plan. This I feel has left England lacking a genuine identity.
To explain, one of Lancaster’s main mantras over the last two years was to make his team more athletic; shed the bulk, make them rangy and able to maintain a fast skill based style of play. It’s not always worked, with England struggling against teams like Ireland, France and South Africa who can out muscle them upfront and set them on the back foot and against teams like New Zealand and Australia who can outpace them.
Subsequently they’ve flitted between reverting to type and really going for it, and never has this been more evident than in their choice of fly half.
Owen Farrell and George Ford are both excellent Stand offs, but very different types of players. One graceful with silky skills in abundance, a passing game that is second to none, and vision that can thread a needle at 50 paces. The other brings in-your-face gain line defence, physicality and game management. The impact they have on how England play the game is profound.
With Farrell they tend to get on the front foot, and look to bulldoze teams, it doesn’t always work but the players seem comfortable with the standard same side flow pattern style of play and he has a way of bringing players onto the ball and raising the intensity of the game in a way Ford can’t.
Cast your mind back to Fiji vs England last week, with Ford at the helm England played error strewn fast paced rugby, it had mistakes but it also had ambition even if England never quite got away from Fiji.
Enter Farrell, suddenly England simplify and start going forward. They get on the good foot, mount masses of pressure and Fiji never really look like wrestling the game back from England. The impact was obvious, the game was faster, more intense and the physicality went up a level.
But then cast your mind back to the final 6 nations game with England running the ball from behind their own try line, scoring multiphase tries from their own half and against Ireland in the warm up games where Ford and Joseph were simply wonderful in the first 20 minutes.
Which is more effective? Well there is no easy answer to that, but you don’t need to be a genius to guess which I prefer.
I think ultimately though the point is England don’t really know what they want to be, this has been reflected in their lack of consistency in selection and the fact that out of the three Tier one teams in Pool A after four years building they are the most unsettled.
So where will they finish? I honestly don’t know, it’s that close.
I think this World Cup is probably 2-3 years too soon for this team, and I think everything comes down to the England vs Australia game, but then that does Wales a massive disservice, regardless of what History demonstrates they are very much able to beat England at Twickenham if they get their game right on the day. But i think ultimately England will just prove too strong and i think if England beat Wales they will head into the Australia game confident of topping the pool.
Will England beat Australia? Possibly. Again Twickenham will hold no fears for the Green and Gold, they’ve had reasonable success there over the years, and they certainly have the players and the skills to beat England but it’s whether or not they can keep England’s pack on the back foot, both in the set piece and the loose, long enough to build a lead.
