Steve Borthwick’s selection of scrum-half is fascinating – and a recognition that England need to move the dial on their gameAlex Mitchell’s selection at scrum-half fascinates me. Has he really improved so much in the space of a month in Steve Borthwick’s eyes that he has managed to go from outside the World Cup squad looking in to starting England’s crucial pool stage match? Or is his selection a recognition that his style of play runs in tandem with what brings out the best in this England? I believe it is the latter and Borthwick needs to be given his fair share of credit for that.There’s an opinion that Borthwick is quite set in his ways. It was very clear...
Fly-half reveals much in his new book, not least the preference for pragmatists over visionaries that still holds England backDanny Cipriani’s new autobiography Who Am I? has been causing a bit of a stir, even in a busy week for rugby. Suffice to say, if the former England fly-half had represented his country as successfully and frequently as he says he chatted up the nation’s women, his caps record would never be beaten.The line that really hit the spot, however, had nothing to do with his – how to put this best – lively personal life. Forget the “squad” rotation details serialised in The Times and focus instead on Cipriani’s thoughts about why England were so reluctant to pick him....
If I am looking for positives from poor preparation, side has stuck to a plan that the coaches believe will win matchesWhen it comes to formulating a gameplan the first fundamental question is, are you going into matches looking to be hard to beat or are you approaching them trying to win? During my time with England in the Six Nations, the approach was always to be hard to beat and, from what I’ve seen this summer, the coaches have doubled down on that for the World Cup.Whether you think that’s the right mindset or not, that’s your opinion but they’ll be banking on the fact they can stay in games and manufacture enough opportunities they can take advantage of...
None of the red cards, suspensions or social media raging is going to make any difference to a player’s future healthTo go by some of the more hysterical pronouncements during the Owen Farrell affair this past fortnight, the very concept of player welfare has been on the line. Ban him after his red card for a reckless tackle, so the argument goes, and rugby union has a future; let him off, and we will unleash a generation of delinquent psychopaths high-tackling each other into early graves.The ugliest side of rugby in the age of social media has been laid bare once again. The personal attacks on Farrell – and on his father when he had the temerity to call them...
Steve Borthwick’s side played with the weight of the world on their shoulders in their first defeat at the hands of FijiWe are running out of synonyms for crisis. Turmoil, disaster, catastrophe, disarray, calamity … put them all together and they barely do justice to England’s predicament. They had never failed to beat Fiji by double figures before this but as the clock ticked down in the final few minutes the Pacific Islanders could bask in the glory of their history-making feats. The blue Fijian flags fluttered in a sun-soaked corner of Twickenham, their supporters dancing with delight. England’s white flags had long since been waved.Fijian pitch invaders were embraced by their teammates, England supporters – those who turned up...