LONG READ Mick Cleary: 'It’s time for England to take aim.'

Joe Marler may have been the only one to figure out the head-scratching twists and turns of ‘Celebrity Traitors’ but even he would struggle to nail down just who the real England are at the moment. Are they the team cock-a-hoop on the back of nine successive victories, playing with swagger and conviction, able to take on any side, anywhere in any conditions? In fact, just like the Springboks. Or are they still an uncertain force, a coming force perhaps but still unsure of half-back and centre combinations, back-row combinations too albeit they are spoilt for options in that regard. And that’s where we are as New Zealand arrive in town. England have gone beyond the glass half-full stage but they are not overflowing with bubbling delight. This may not be a vintage All Black side. But it is nowhere near a vintage England side either. Yet.

Victory on Saturday would change our perspective. Of course it would. You may argue that it is only one fixture in a non-tournament event – not from next year it won’t be – but one single game does and should matter otherwise what is the point of any fixture outside a Rugby World Cup? The stakes are high at Twickenham. And England, for all the uptick in their fortunes – and bravo to them for that – have a good bit to prove. Victory number ten in a row would do that.

However, it will take some doing. Admirable as England’s record is there is still a sense of them not being the complete article. There is something missing. A couple of pieces in that fiendishly difficult jigsaw. Do they have, for example, anything in their locker that can rival the dual playmaker talents of New Zaland’s Barrett and McKenzie? Smith and Smith versus Beauden and Damian? Only one answer there. Do they have a Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu? Does anyone for that matter? A left-field coach like Rassie Erasmus? That’s a big question and to be fair to Steve Borthwick his development of an impact-shaping replacement bench is coming along nicely as the second-half finishes against Australia last weekend and now Fiji have shown.

Perhaps it’s a good thing that England are under the radar. You would still reckon that the All Blacks are marginal favourites as they come to Twickenham if for no other reason that England have not beaten them there since that day of glorious Manu-led delivery in 2012. Indeed, England’s only win over New Zealand in that period since was the semi-final demolition job in Yokohama.

England have been close but without ever being able to light the cigar. That second-best status has to change if England are to be taken as serious contenders for the 2027 World Cup. There may be a way to go before that global showdown but the RWC draw in only a few weeks’ time brings the tournament into sharp relief. The Springboks are clear of the field and look like staying that way with the sheer force of their play, the cleverness of their approach as well as the tactical variety within their ranks. It helps, of course, if you can whistle down a coal-mine and summon several beasts of burden to help your cause.

Ollie Lawrence has to start against New Zealand. The Bath centre made a difference against Fiji. He may not yet be at full throttle following his Achilles injury but there was enough punch and purpose in his play to indicate that he can do a job for England.

England need to weaponize their pack accordingly if they are to deal with tooled-up realities. Chandler Cunningham-South has the potential to do for England as Jasper Wiese is doing for the Springboks. And Wallace Sititi for New Zealand. For all the data and analysis and nuance, a big banger is a big banger. They matter in the modern game as they always have. Ben Earl has fabulous skills as Zinzan Brooke once did (in a slightly different way) for the All Blacks. But getting across the gain line, finding that precious flicker of momentum, is what it is all about. Get that marginal advantage in your favour and so much else slots into place. Cunningham-South showed on Saturday that he has the will and the wherewithal to fulfil that role, with Earl and Tom Curry riding shotgun alongside. It’s time to bed in that formation.

The same rationale applies in midfield. Ollie Lawrence has to start against New Zealand. The Bath centre made a difference against Fiji. He may not yet be at full throttle following his Achilles injury but there was enough punch and purpose in his play to indicate that he can do a job for England. And in what shirt? It was such a missed opportunity in moving Tommy Freeman back out to the wing (where he didn’t have his most accomplished game, maybe because of re-shuffle uncertainties) and not continue with grooming him as an outside centre. A Lawrence-Freeman combo offers so much, all the more so given that England have options on the wing.

What is clear in the modern era is that a trophy-chasing team has to have X-factor. Modern defences do not yield easily. Unless you are France and twice forget to guard the fringe channel. Merci beaucoup says Cobus Reinach. Pity the hapless Frenchie designated for that slot when Shaun Edwards gets to them in Monday’s review.

England do not have an established out-and-out game changer in the mould of a Sacha or Cheslin or Louis Bielle-Biarray or a record-breaking Damian Penaud. Any man that gets across the try-line more often than a Serge Blanco is made of the right stuff.

Pace transcends all other considerations as Jonny May showed against the All Blacks in 2014. Not many can leave Conrad Smith grasping at thin air. Speed. Have it in the armoury.

England do actually have star potential. But they have to be involved, primed for action. At least Immanuel Feyi-Waboso saw more ball this week. He needs more and more of it if he is to do what a Will Jordan is entirely capable of doing from the other end of the field on Saturday. The same applies to Henry Arundell. The France-returnee has to be on the bench for late-game action, as explosive as any up-front Bomb Squad. Pace transcends all other considerations as Jonny May showed against the All Blacks in 2014. Not many can leave Conrad Smith grasping at thin air. Speed. Have it in the armoury.

There is still the issue of fly-half to address. Fin Smith did ok on Saturday but England need George Ford at No 10 if they are to get the win that can trigger that all-important move up to the next level. Smith is a better defensive player as he showed against those Fijian rampagers but Ford is there to scheme and orchestrate.

England are in a great place, buoyed by a balance sheet of victories but with the knowledge that there is more to come. The southern hemisphere wins in Edinburgh and Paris proved that everything has to be in perfect working order – set-piece, banging momentum and X-factor potential – if the big southern guns are to be silenced. It’s time for England to take aim.