The Kevin Sinfield verdict on his England defence shipping 50-plus
New England defence coach Kevin Sinfield coach has spoken to the media for the first time since last Saturday’s record Guinness Six Nations loss to France. Steve Borthwick’s squad leaked seven tries in round four of the championship and must regroup quickly because Ireland in Dublin next Saturday will be England’s toughest assignment yet in 2023.
“It’s been tough. Any time you get 50 stuck on your chin it’s not nice,” said Sinfield, who was appointed Borthwick’s England number two after Eddie Jones was sacked in December. “You probably get a fair bit less sleep because you are mulling things over trying to understand why, but we have worked incredibly hard over the last couple of days to try and fix some of the areas we fell short in – and there are quite a few.
“The players were hit pretty hard as you can expect from a result like that, but we have stuck together and we fight through it as a team, squad and staff to ensure that we continue to move forward. This was never going to be a straight line and it was never going to be straightforward.
“When you ship 50 points and you are in charge of the defence, it doesn’t sit well with you. I certainly don’t put this at the players’ door. We are all in this together and we have got to work our way through it. For whatever reason, we didn’t turn up on Saturday. It’s our job to fix it and make sure it doesn’t happen again.
“It shouldn’t have happened on Saturday but what’s done is done, we learn the lessons, pick the bones out of it and ensure we are better this weekend.”
England’s hopes of gatecrashing Ireland’s Grand Slam party in Dublin were hit on Tuesday by the loss of Ollie Chessum to an ankle problem. Chessum sustained the injury in training and while no timeframe was given for his return, he will definitely sit out the climax to the championship on St Patrick’s weekend.
The 22-year-old nine-cap international has overshadowed more established second row partner Maro Itoje throughout the tournament on account of his work rate and impact across the field. But his breakthrough Six Nations is over in a significant setback for England, who will now choose between David Ribbans, Nick Isiekwe, George Martin and Jonny Hill for his replacement at the Aviva Stadium.
“Ollie will be a huge loss. He has been great for us. We have played him in the second row but he covers back row for us as well,” said Sinfield. Chessum is the second starter from Saturday’s record-breaking 53-10 defeat by France to miss out against the world’s number-one ranked team after centre Ollie Lawrence was struck down by hamstring damage.
Manu Tuilagi has completed a three-week suspension for dangerous play and offers a direct replacement for the hard-running Lawrence, but Borthwick may instead overhaul the midfield completely. For the first time in this Six Nations, Borthwick will approach Thursday’s team announcement with three fly-halves in contention after Marcus Smith, Owen Farrell and George Ford were retained in a reduced 30-man squad.
The challenge facing Borthwick is deciding whether to give the starting XV who collapsed before France – minus the injured Chessum and Lawrence – another chance or to make changes.
“It’s about getting the balance right between giving those guys another shot but also making sure that the selection is right for the opposition we are playing against, which is what we have tried to do during the campaign,” Sinfield said.
“We have tried to pick a team that suits both how we want to play but also the opposition’s strengths and weaknesses. We will stay along that same theme but the balance between the two will be crucial for us this weekend.”
Comments on RugbyPass
South Africa rarely play Ireland and France on these tours. Mostly, England, Scotland and Wales. I wonder why
1 Go to commentsIt was a let’s-see-what-you're-made-of type of a game. The Bulls do look good when the opposition allows them to, but Munster shut them down, and they could not find a way through. Jake should be very worried about their chances in the competition.
2 Go to commentsHats off to Fabian for a very impressive journey to date. Is it as ‘uniquely unlikely’ as Rugby Pass suggests, given Anton Segner’s journey at the Blues?
1 Go to commentsSad that this was not confirmed. When administrators talk about expanding the game they evidently don’t include pathways to the top tier of rugby for teams outside of the old boys club. Rugby deserves better, and certainly Georgia does.
1 Go to commentsLions might take him on if they move on Van Rooyen but I doubt he will want to go back, might consider it a step backwards for himself. Sharks would take him on but if Plumtree goes on to win the challenge cup they will keep him on. Also sharks showing some promising signs recently. Stormers and Bulls are stable and Springboks are already filled up. Quality coach though, interesting to see where he ends up
1 Go to commentsAnd the person responsible for creating a culture of accountability is?
2 Go to commentsMore useless words from Ben Smith -Please get another team to write about. SA really dont need your input, it suck anyway.
264 Go to commentsThis disgraceful episode must result in management and coach team sackings. A new manager with worse results than previous and the coaching staff need to coached. Awful massacre led by donkeys.
1 Go to commentsInteresting article with one glaring mistake. This sentence: “And between the top four nations right now, Ireland, France, South Africa, and New Zealand…” should read: And between the top four nations right now, South Africa, Ireland, New Zealand and France…”. Get it right wistful thinkers, its not that hard.
23 Go to commentsHow did Penny get the gig anyway?
2 Go to commentsNice write up Nick and I would have agreed a week ago. However as you would know Cale & co got absolutely monstered by the Blues back row of Sotutu, Ioane and Papaliti and not all of these 3 are guaranteed a start in the Black jumper. He may need to put some kgs before stepping up, Spring tour? After the week end Joe will be a bit more restless. Will need to pick a mobile tough pack for Wales and hope England does the right thing and bashes the ABs. I like your last paragraph but I would bring Swinton, Hannigan into the 6 role and Bobby V to 8
21 Go to commentsThe Crusaders can still get in to the Play Off’s. The imminent return of outstanding captain Scott Barrett and his All Black team mate Codie Taylor will be a big boost.There are others like Tamaiti Williams too. Two home games coming up. Fellow Crusader fans get there and support these guys. I will be.
1 Go to commentsCant get more Wellington than Proctor.
2 Go to commentsWhy not let the media decide. Like how they choose the head coach. Like most of us we entrust the rugby system to choose. A rugby team includes the coaches. It's collective.
13 Go to commentsHi NIck, I have been very impressed with him and he seems a smart player who can see opportunities which Bobby V _(who must be an international 6_) doesn’t see or have the speed to take advantage of. If he continues to improve and puts on 5kgs then he could be a great 8. He is a bit taller than Keiran Reid at 1.93m and 111 kgs, so his skill set fits his body size and who knows where it will lead. I hope the spate of Achilles tendon issues have been dealt with by the S&C people. It’s been a very long time since Mark Loane and Kefu stood out at 8. The question is will we be able to hold onto him, if he does make it he will be pretty hot property. I disagree with the idea of letting them go to the Northern Hemisphere and then bring them back.
21 Go to commentsBilly Fulton 🤣🤣🤣🤣 garrrmon not even close
13 Go to commentsDoes the AI take into account refs? hahaha Seriously why not have two on field refs to avoid bias?
23 Go to commentsVern challenging this Blues side might be the edge they need to fulfill their potential. Convincing results from strong D and strong carries are hard to argue against.
1 Go to commentsLove seems to add a strong back field defense with speed to close the gap and tackle to his ability to attack, kick and pass (an accurate long pass). This sets him an edge over some of the other names - JRK in particular. Has to be said that Jordan and Stevenson have also been exposed defensively while Love has yet to face test match intensity. Spoilt for choice.
1 Go to commentsHe’s strung together a few strong seasons, I’d like to see him in the ABs and build some depth along with Reiko and ALB. Levi Aumua hasn’t taken the step we hoped to see but time yet.
2 Go to comments