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Lewis Ludlam issues a message to the booing England supporters
Back-rower Lewis Ludlam has issued a message to frustrated England supporters, appealing for them to stick with Steve Borthwick’s team despite unhappiness with Sunday night’s latest Rugby World Cup performance.
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It was only towards the finish of the Pool D contest in Nice that the English finally headed off the entertaining Japanese challenge that had Jamie Joseph’s team trailing by just a point near midway in the second half.
A fluke try created from a Joe Marler header on 56 minutes eventually proved to be the decisive score, giving England the breathing space to go on and secure a 34-12 victory in which their four-try bonus point arrived with the clock in the red.
Before that upper hand materialised, England were subjected to some loud booing from their own supporters at Stade de Nice, a situation that wasn’t lost on Ludlam who was a first-half try-scorer before giving way to Billy Vunipola 11 minutes into the second period with Borthwick’s team only 13-9 ahead.
Asked if he had a message for the England fans who felt they weren’t suitably entertained by their kick-heavy performance, Ludlam said: “I’ll just say stick with us, we’re a team that is learning every week and there are probably opportunities in there that we could have run the ball but it is hard to say how greasy that ball was.
“It was humid in that stadium and a couple of times we tried to play and we gave the ball away and we ended up straight back on our try line. George (Ford) was very good at putting us in the right areas, putting the ball in behind to give us a better opportunity to attack further up the pitch.
“It’s hard to get the fans excited about that. We understand but we’re building and, like I say, we will take more opportunities and we will be a better team next week and play in the right areas of the pitch.
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“Japan are a brilliant team, they made it really hard for us at times. They played in the right areas of the pitch, they put the ball in behind us a few times and put us under some real heat. Probably not the performance we wanted, not a complete performance, but happy to get the win and the five points.
“We need to probably execute our set-piece a bit better. We let one or two go amiss and ball security as well, we probably gave the ball back to them way too many times. Steve said after the game there is heaps we can work on over the next couple of days, put those wrongs right and we will be a better team next week.”
Next week means minnows Chile on Saturday in Lille, a fixture where surely even the limited England attack can enjoy a better return on the try front. That’s a match that Owen Farrell is available for selection for as his four-game ban expired at full-time in Nice.
“He is always champing at the bit to get involved. Whether he is banned or not, he is always there, always leading the team forward. It’s massive we have got him back. It’s just adding to that competition at 10 which is so fierce. It’s brilliant,” reckoned Ludlam.
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“He is a proper competitor, one of the most competitive blokes I have had the pleasure of playing with and against. He is going to fight until the end and lead the team in the right way. He is a massive character and happy he is back from his ban now.”
Comments on RugbyPass
1 week for two cynical and dirty plays? Absolutely pathetic punishment. He should’ve at least received 2 weeks - 1 week per trip. The guy is a cheating moron and liability. He should go back to league.
2 Go to commentsTest rugby is different level Some players are just big time players when the stakes are high they play better. The boks often lost to AUS on tour as they wanted to beat AB. Even at school level this is the case where some guys play better in tough games.
41 Go to commentsLet’s hope he misses more than just the Force game or the Reds won’t get very far in the finals.
2 Go to commentsThanks Nick. I’m looking at the other 7 options in Australia and they don’t seem to be close behind Fraser at the moment? Even before reading this I thought he was well ahead. A random one - Slipper and Allalatoa seem to be getting well beaten in the scrum. I can’t remember this happening often before. Is it a technique/teamwork issue or are their bodies finally past it?
18 Go to commentsNZ is now entrenched in Div 2 of womens rugby. Canada would be thrashed by the likes of France or England. Europe are Div 1, with massive competitions, massive money…
2 Go to commentsBlackadder dies not deserve selection. He has not played enough games. Finau is just better. Kaino's replacement at Blindside On form TJ should be the starting 9 .
128 Go to commentsThe difference is Cotter..
6 Go to commentsThey can’t handle the level of comp in the NH. Pollard was a complete waste at Montpellier - and was the backup 12 when he left. Kitschoff was stealing his paycheque every week at Ulster,- getting absolutely rinsed by backup THs in the URC. There is a reason all the Boks go to Japan - they don’t have it in them to be able to compete. And yes, they won the RWC. Where Barnes and O'Keeffe were the direct reason for that tragedy occurring.
41 Go to commentsTrouble with Jones is he has so many impractical innovations. Kemeney wasn't good enough in any position for top level test rugby. I like how Vern has Papalii playing. He's always had the workrate when in form, although I'm not sure that he quite has Cane's mongrel.
18 Go to commentsPut those results on the old CV and send it in to the crusaders bro.
1 Go to commentsJust go with a top 6 system where the top 2 teams go straight to the semi-finals and the other 4 teams fight it out for the other 2 semi-final spots.
8 Go to commentsIt’s a shame that Baxter wasn’t nominated for DoR of the season. what he did is more impressive than McCall imo
1 Go to commentsSeveral boks said during World Cup they play so hard to give people back home hope. As an Englishman the Springboks Captain’s life story is an inspiration which should give us all hope and inspiration. Rather like that other great South African, Nelson Mandela
41 Go to commentsFox News, Tucker Carlson, Jordan Peterson and Joe Rogan? Yikes.
1 Go to commentsThat is harsh though. Messi has/had a reputation for trying to keep his feet and keep dribbling for goal. Many of his brethren were the histrionic divers but not him.
2 Go to commentsMcReight is certainly one of the first picked. He’s going to be the glue, a Wallaby with some rugby IQ and the everywhere man for the Wallabies.
18 Go to commentsSophie De Goede is one of the best players we’ve ever produced. Kicked all the points, 2 try assists, line out takes, carries, tackles, charge downs… what a player
1 Go to commentsThe guy had just beasted himself in a scrum and the blood hadn't yet returned to his head when he was pushed into a team mate. He took his weight off his left foot precisely at the moment he was shoved and dropped to the floor when seemingly trying to avoid stepping on Hyron Andrews’ foot. I don't think he was trying to milk a penalty, I think he was knackered but still switched on enough to avoid planting 120kgs on the dorsum of his second row’s foot. To effectively “police” such incidents with a (noble) view to eradicating play acting in rugby, yet more video would need to be reviewed in real time, which is not in the interest of the game as a sporting spectacle. I would far rather see Farrell penalised for interfering with the refereeing of the game. Perhaps he was right to be frustrated, he was much closer to the action than the only camera angle I've seen, however his vocal objection to Rodd’s falling over doesn't legitimately fall into the captain's role as the mouthpiece of his team - he should have kept his frustration to himself, that's one of the pillars of rugby union. I appreciate that he was within his rights to communicate with the referee as captain but he didn't do this, he moaned and attempted to sway the decision by directing his complaint to the player rather than the ref. Rugby needs to look closely at the message it wants to send to young players and amateur grassroots rugby. The best way to do this would be to apply the laws as they are written and edit them where the written laws no longer apply. If this means deleting laws such as ‘the put in to the scrum must be straight”, so be it. Likewise, if it is no longer necessary to respect the referee’s decision without questioning it or pre-emptively attempting to sway it (including by diving or by shouting and gesticulating) then this behaviour should be embraced (and commercialised). Otherwise any reference to respecting the referee should be deleted from the laws. You have to start somewhere to maintain the values of rugby and the best place to start would be giving a penalty and a warning against the offending player, followed by a yellow card the next time. People like Farrell would rapidly learn to keep quiet and let their skills do the talking.
1 Go to commentsThe name “Kwagga” came to mind while I was reading this. And there’s another Sevens convert roaming the wide open kant at the Lions now - JC Pretorius. Keep an eye on him.
18 Go to comments2024 Rugby Championship: Sat, 10 Aug 2024 – Sat, 28 Sept 2024. Looking forward to watching the All Blacks coached by Scott Robertson, with or without the ‘dynamic’ qualities of Shannon Michael Frizell - see his display against South Africa at Go Media Mount Smart Stadium on July 15.
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