Stuart Lancaster is one of the most pragmatic coaches around, and will have had a specific plan for each one of these warm-up games, devised some time ago. This weekend he has recalled 90% of what looks like his first choice team, evidently to give them a chance to gel – but there are still some selection dilemmas to be resolved before he names his final 31 next week.
1. Centres of attention
Brad Barritt and Jonathan Joseph have been guaranteed their places in the squad for some time – probably every since Manu Tuilagi lost the plot earlier this summer. It was widely assumed that Luther Burrell, after being ‘in possession’ of the shirt during the Six Nations, would be the first reserve, leaving Billy Twelvetrees, Sam Burgess and Henry Slade to fight it out for the final spot. But the latter two impressed at Twickenham; so much so that Lancaster hasn’t felt the need to look at them again this weekend. Does that mean they’ve jumped ahead of Burrell? Not necessarily, but the Northampton man certainly needs a good performance this weekend or he may find himself usurped by the two debutants. As for Twelvetrees, he will have a final cameo to try to prove his worth, but at this stage it would take a hattrick in 20 minutes to see him jump back ahead of his rivals after so many missed chances.
2. The curious case of Danny Cipriani
The decision not to give Danny Cipriani a start this weekend means his ship could well have sailed – especially if Henry Slade has done enough to make the final squad, as mooted above, with his ability to comfortably cover fly-half. It would mean Alex Goode wouldn’t be third choice fly-half and would lessen the need for another player that can play there. At the moment the primary role Cipriani is auditioning for is that of Goode – the hybrid second choice fullback/third choice fly-half. Cipriani would be better than Goode at the second of those two roles, but worse at the first. Slade’s ascendency would all but obliterate the need of another fly-half option, meaning back-up full-back becomes the more important consideration. Alex Goode is comfortably the better option there; like Twelvetrees, Cipriani will only have the opportunity to prove himself from the bench again this weekend.
3. Winging into the starting XV
Anthony Watson, Jonny May and Jack Nowell should all make the final squad, but there is still an audition for the starting jerseys to be had. Watson, after after his two utterly sublime finishes last weekend, looks nailed on to take one of them. Nowell was the man in the possession from the Six Nations, but it wouldn’t be surprising if this weekend was used as a direct shoot-out between him and May to partner Watson. May looked hungry last weekend, showing his insatiable pace to set Watson up once and making a couple of half-breaks that hint at what he is capable of. Nowell is perhaps a more solid option, and may be the more attractive choice on the other flank in games against more attack-minded sides.
4. Hookers
Rob Webber is an accurate line-out thrower but proved last weekend that he offers little else around the park. He is neither an effective carrier nor an aggressive tackler. Luke Cowan-Dickie came off the bench to prove his both of those things – but failed miserably with his darts. Tom Youngs is nailed on as the number one hooker, but a poor performance throwing into the line-out this weekend could work in Rob Webber’s favour, as Lancaster may see him as necessary to provide safety in that area. It is therefore a shame that Jamie George, who ostensibly is a fine player in all departments, will only have a cameo from the bench to prove his worth. You suspect that it will be a case of comparing his cameo with that of Cowan-Dickie last weekend, for the final hooking spot in the squad.
By Jamie Hosie
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I wonder whether Brown, T Youngs and Joseph will come off at half time, to give Cips, George and 12t a chance to stake a claim. Given how important and nailed on those starting 3 are, I can see them being protected ahead of the Ireland match, which I imagine would be the starting 23 for Fiji.
Certainly an interesting few days ahead, for me I was happy with the work of Burgess and feel as though he should go as a second 12. Burrell set the game alit two years ago but has since struggled to rekindle the creative spark. Let’s look at ‘that’ break in the first 30 seconds of the England France six nations game this year to show that he is missing things.
Twelevetrees should and will be replaced by Slade who is more versatile, surprisingly strong and a true fan favourite which should not be underrated if things go well in the group stages. Lancaster will look like a genius instead of the rather hurtful and unnecessary comments he has been receiving of late.
Cipriani – we all love him, he wont be above Farrell or Ford (which I think is about right) and he will remain as the Stephen Myler of the England squad. Always on the guest list but always stuck in traffic. Goode played really well last week and should go as back up fullback – Brown is better and Nowell and Watson can both cover but he is still second choice.
JJ will start and as much as people don’t like Barritt (unless he’s saving the day against Australia, or scoring against the Boks with two minutes left to make the game contestable, or his Barritt, Tuilagi, Barrit try against the all blacks). He’s a brick wall in defence I don’t see why people can’t accept that he is very good at what he does and England don’t exactly bleed tries when he’s playing.
Still surprised Roko wasn’t kept or that Wade hasn’t been called up – Probably due to him dropping the ball against the BaaBaa’s.
Food for thought anyway.
Nice Frank Turner reference ;) All fair points though. If Barritt has Ford and Joseph around him, he can worry about being the defensive staple while they create.
It’s a Bob Dillon reference but it’s a good Frank turner song too :)
It’s a shame Cips hasn’t been given a chance to show his worth, seems the coaches have decided on him before he even turned up along with 12T and a few wingers.
Thought Goode had a good game but wonder why Watson isn’t considered full back material by England, this would allow a power runner like Rokoduguni into the squad to add a different dimension to the side
For me the most disappointing thing is the Webber/George scenario. It looks as though Webber could be in ahead of George, and that is mostly based on experience instead of form. Webber couldn’t even get a start for Bath for most of the season, whereas George was one of the stand out players for Sarries last season.
Webber is a solid player, but his performance last week (apart from his darts) was average at best. HIs scrummaging was not great, and his inability to get the ball out of the scrum (or even into the second row) didn’t fill me with much confidence.
I think the choice of wingers will come down to who we’re playing in each match.
Cipriani has probably lost out because of Slade, and although I feel sorry for him, you have to say that Slade has had a stellar season for Exeter, and Cips has been good, but not on the same level. Could Cips play like Slade did last week if he filled in at 13? Probably not! Could Slade play at 10 to the same level as Cips? Probably yes!
As for the centres, it’s all about the style we want to play. Barritt and Burgess are the best 12 options in my opinion. Both carry like flankers, and will trouble defences (Burgess more so than Barritt), but both will also worry attacking opposition because of their tackling.
JJ and Slade are our two best outside options, but don’t forget that both May and Nowell have played at 13 for their clubs before.
Both Burrell and 12T have blown hot and cold for England, and neither has been consistently good for their clubs. Burrell has been shown up for Saints before in some horrendous defensive blunders, and 12T tackling is weak for a bloke of his size. Their ability in attack is good, but both have butchered chances for club and country with ball in hand. Some obvious 2 on 1’s spring to mind.
My first choice combination would probably be Barritt and JJ with Slade on the bench. For the Fiji and Uruguay games I would play Burgess and Slade with JJ on the bench.
I agree with everything you say but have a nasty feeling Slade will get pipped by either Burrell or 12t. As you noted above, SL seems to value experience above form.
Re: Jamie George, it sounds like Lancaster has some aspect of his game that he doesn’t like on the basis that he didn’t make the original 50. That being the case his chances seem slim unless he can shown Lancaster that
a) he can improve/change that aspect in camp and
b) he can perform on the international stage
Cowan-Dickie passed the first and flunked the second
Haven’t seen anything in the media about lancaster opinion of george’s performance in camp but i get the feeling that unless he has a stellar 30+ minutes he will not make the cut, which will be a big shame
If that’s the case I would love to know what part of his game it is. Statistically the best line out thrower in the squad, so unless SL thinks he’s not solid in the scrum, or offers nothing around the park?!
I am a Sarries fan so slightly biased, but I’ve been watching George play for yeaars, and his attitude and workrate is second to none. Very very rarley seen him have a bad game. I’ve also never seen him swear at a ref, punch, bite or headbutt players. Maybe that’s what SL thinks he’s lacking!? Lol
I’m an anti-Sarries fan and think George is great too ;)
Hi Dazza,
I really like your assessment here. It follows along my line of thinking which is a shame.
Out of curiosity what do you currently think of our options at 10 and who would you play for each match.
I think Farrell should take Australia and Uraguy and Ford Oz, Wales and Fiji. I could see a switch for the Fiji and Uraguay with Farrell playing the defensive game and Ford the attacking game when we need points against the weaker team.
Thoughts?
HI Andrew,
If Ford has the right players around him I think he’s perfectly capable of playing in any game. If Barritt gets fit I would definitely have him in the Wales and Aus games beside Ford. I still think we might see Ford and Farrell together at some point.
The difference in the two players means you have to change other players to get the best out of them. If Farrell is playing you need a Goode or Slade in the team because Farrell does have a habit of getting stuck in rucks trying to win turnovers, and you need another first receiver/playmaker. If Ford is playing you need Barritt (or similar) to hold and organise the defence.
It will be interesting to see Fofana and Bastareaud running at Burrell and JJ this weekend and see how they cope with them. Both are tricky players to defend against and I’m not sure Burrell and JJ will cope too well?! Having 12T on the bench doesn’t fill me with much hope either.
Hi Dazza,
I like the idea of Farrell and ford playing together with Slade at 15. That would be a very open and quick game. Would need May and Watson on the wings and maybe even Nowell at fullback. Maybe against Uruguay. Could be fun. Depends on how many points are needed.
I think centres for France will be fine as they were in the 6 nations together and have had more time than most.
The Anti Farrell vibe really annoys me and I can see him playing a huge point in the next few weeks. His friendship with Ford can only be a positive if they play together.
Completely agree with the Ford/Farrell axis. They played so much together at 10/12 in the age groups for England, and under Lancaster at the time I believe.
I guess the only reason not to play them together too much is if one of them gets crocked, we’re in trouble.
As far as the France game goes, the thing that worries me about Burrell is he seems to try and be something he’s not, and that’s a playmaking 12. He’s shown flashes of it for Saints in the last couple of years, but not consistently enough to be considered as one. He can cut loose on occasion and break the defence, but as we saw in the 6N, he then gets a bit lost and doesn’t know what to do next. The chance he had to grubber the ball or at least attempt a long pass to Watson, but instead he tried to take the defence one on one and failed! It really sticks in my mind, that at international level, those kind of chances cannot be missed.
We know what we’re going to get with Barritt, and that is a player who will not stop tackling for 80 minutes, and will crash the ball up when required, get stuck into rucks and slow down opposition ball. People will say that’s not the 12’s job, but against some teams it’s exactly what you need. This is why I think Burgess could be crucial. Especially having played so much at 6 recently for Bath. If he can play like he did last week but with Ford and JJ, and England can hold their defensive shape, we really will be a force.
I have a real concern about Fiji, I think they will impact the group much more than how many points they concede – I actually wouldn’t be surprised to see them win a game. Knowing my luck it will be England in game 1!!!
Agree we need to be wary of Fiji. Need to quiet them early doors and get some scores, I back Ford for that. Who knows maybe Farrell at 12 for kicking.
I would play Farrell against Fiji and Uruguay and Ford in the rest, I think Fiji game would benefit from a stronger more aggressive defender in 10 channel and Uruguay to keep him match fit.
I agree with that. We’ll beat Fiji with structured, strategic rugby. If we go into the match thinking we’re going to fling the ball around and score bucket-loads of tries, we could be in trouble.
As Wales found in 2007, if you try to play Fiji at their own game it’s going to end in tears.
A defensive but capable backline of Wigglesworth, Farrell, Barritt, Joseph, Nowell, Watson and Brown for me please
Also wouldn’t want to see Youngs or Ford get injured in the first game
I would go into the Fiji game with the A team.
For me, that means Ford. I believe he is good enough to play a tighter game as necessary.
It is the first game, a potential banana skin, and it needs to be taken seriously and respectfully. If, and I wouldn’t take this as a “given”, England get into a comfortable position then they cane make changes earlier than they may otherwise
England then have 8 days until they play Wales. Wales will have had six days from their Uruguay game.
The Uruguay game is an interesting choice for Gatland. Does he play his A team in that? I think that he probably should, simply to get a game under their belts. From an England perspective I would rather he chose a second string to play Uruguay.
That’s the gamble for wales isn’t it, in theory they would protect the top players for the England game but can they risk poor point return or even a loss against South American champions. Wales always seem to be slow starters in 6 nations and I wonder if this may also be the case in RWC? I think if England beat Fiji well then Gatland will be forced to play his strongest team meaning some players may still be suffering when they play England less than a week later.