Bin the soundbites Eddie, a 50-point win is a must - Andy Goode
It was a case of smoke and mirrors again from Eddie Jones this week with eight forwards and seven backs selected in the starting XV and, regardless of the team selection, anything less than a 50-point winning margin will be a disappointment.
He talks a good game in the media suggesting he’s a maverick coach with radical new ideas but I think you either have to follow through with it or just stop throwing these things out there, as he’s done previously saying he might pick Jack Nowell in the back row.
Maro Itoje may be playing in the back row and Jonathan Joseph on the wing, which could certainly be perceived as square pegs in round holes, but they’re certainly not revolutionary picks and both have played there before.
Eddie may have picked a forward on the wing against Georgia when he was Japan coach but I don’t see why that would even be a consideration for England, it’s not something he’s going to do against Ireland or Wales and it’s clearly just another soundbite.
England got the job done against Italy a fortnight ago in terms of getting the try bonus point eventually and winning the Six Nations title but the performance was far from impressive and Eddie has spoken about putting smiles on people’s faces so that’s what everyone will be looking for against the Georgians.
The All Blacks have famously had a lot of success in the past by kicking a lot but 44 kicks in play against Italy was way too many. It’s clearly a tactic but one that should have been adapted by the players in game when it wasn’t working.
They kicked the ball away on almost 20% of their possessions so they’ll need to show far more in terms of their attacking game at Twickenham and it’d be good to see the players taking the initiative a bit more rather than changes being made at half-time.
Some people may have expected there to be more changes to the team but it’s great to see Jack Willis and Ollie Lawrence in particular given their opportunities and they won’t mind what the circumstances are but they’ll benefit from being surrounded by experience.
I remember meeting Ollie’s dad at a dinner a couple of years ago and him telling me his son was going to be a big star and it turns out he wasn’t just a case of a dad talking up his lad, he was absolutely right.
It’s great for him to be surrounded by an almost entirely first choice England backline, with the exception of Joseph filing in for Anthony Watson on the wing, and I agree with Eddie Jones that it doesn’t really matter too much who plays inside and who plays outside centre nowadays.
It’s ideal for Willis as well with Billy Vunipola alongside him to do the carrying and Itoje there to shoulder some of that carrying burden as well as hit countless rucks and make the dominant tackles, allowing the Wasps man to focus on what he’s done phenomenally well at the breakdown in the Premiership.
The performance and margin of victory was below par against Italy and Georgia are a similar proposition so, regardless of the personnel out on the field, it has to be at least a 50-point win to put a smile on those faces.
Comments on RugbyPass
guys its fine! he understands why he did what he did and has taken accountability for it; why should he have to be accountable to a court? after all he did was abuse people in person - its not as if he was engaging in _online_ abuse!
1 Go to commentsChiefs flanker Kaylum Boshier yellow-carded for collapsing the scrum as it rolled towards the line. It was a maul….
1 Go to commentsyou know, i’m a leinster fan so I want Northampton to lose and it is gonna be tuff with Cortney lawes, Alex michell and the other guys🏉 lets go leinster🏉
1 Go to commentsWelcome to the Pro ranks. Those hard teams of old do hit the sole better though. its a dog fight at the top.
6 Go to commentsCan someone fill me in please, I've read a number of Ben Smith articles now and it seems he's got something again South Africa? Surely, this game was over and done with 7 months ago. Can't we have something a bit more interesting and relevant, or is this the calibre of journalist on this site?
227 Go to commentsNot sure what the Welsh are moaning about. They’ve had far more players off England, than England have had off Wales. Guys like Josh Hathaway and Kane James will play for Wales in the end. And they’ll be fsr better players for having played in the Gallagher Premiership, than they ever would have been had they stayed mired in the shambles that is Welsh rugby.
3 Go to commentsThis is all being blown totally out of proportion. First of all, since half the Irish team isn’t Irish - it’s very likely that none of the Irish players said that at all and, thus, we’re not being arrogant. Second, since half the Irish team is Kiwi - it’s very likely the Kiwi players were predicting a NZ SA World Cup final. Which they got spot on. Good on them!
163 Go to commentsAha. An Irishman with logic! Follow the flow: - Ireland peaks with a >80% win record between 2020 and 2023. And then… - crashes out of another QF at the WC; - Beat a poor French Team; - Beat 6N wooden spoonists Italy; - Play shite against eventual wooden spoonists Wales; - Lose against the most boring, “the worst English team ever” , a team widely regarded as unable to attack; - scrape through against Scotland. This article, No - Trimble, is on the money! Except for one glaring statement: _The Springboks have a few aces in the hole in this debate being the reigning world champions and official world number ones_ There is no debate, boys and girls. There it is. In black and white. “Reigning World Champions and OFFICIAL world number ones”. Come July, the overrated Andy Farrell and this overhyped team are going to enter into a world of hurt.
86 Go to commentsI’d like to know what homoerotic events Daniel enjoyed at 8th man. I clearly missed out!
19 Go to commentsThis article is missing some detail, like some actual context or info about what led to him abusing the ref.
2 Go to comments*They used to say that football is a gentleman sport watched by hooligans and rugby is a hooligan sport watched by gentlemen. How times have changed.*
3 Go to commentsexcept ot wasnt late wasnt late at all so dont know why you all saying its late he commits early and its your fault fir not paying attention
29 Go to commentsNot sure the Bulls need another average utility back in their ranks. Chamberlain has been ok for the Sharks but is by no means an X-Factor player. Bulls bought several utility backs which they barely use. A typical example would be Henry Immelman who plays mostly Fullback. The Bulls however have rarely played him this year and he has played wing or centre. Bulls want to build depth but seems like they have too many surplus players
1 Go to commentsABs lost against a side playing without a hooker - The guy playing, had one shoulder. Line outs were a gimme for the ABs, and the last 8 minutes 14 played 14 against a team that had been smashed 3 weeks in a row… Yet with all that possession, with all that territory, with all the advantages they actually had, especially in the last 8 minutes, they couldn’t buy a point. Those last 8 minutes determined if they outplayed the Boks or not. History will show that the Boks completely outplayed the ABs, especially in those last 8 minutes, the business end of any rugby match
227 Go to commentsWould’ve, could’ve, should’ve, didn’t.
227 Go to commentsKok will become a fan favourite
1 Go to commentsI am really looking forward to Leigh Halfpenny playing his first Super rugby game for the Crusaders Playing a long side his former Welsh and Scarlets team mate Johnny McNicoll.Johnny has been playing great, back in a Crusaders jersey.The attack has strengthened big time. Also looking forward to David Havili at 10. David is a class act, it also allows Dallas McLeod to remain at 12. A good thing.
1 Go to commentsIf he had stopped insisting on playing in the backrow, instead of wing, where everyone told him he should, he would have been a Bok years ago….
11 Go to comments‘Salads don’t win scrums’ 😂 I love that.
19 Go to commentsCan’t wait for the article that talks about misogyny in Ireland. Somehow.
19 Go to comments