Why the Ford-Farrell axis was England's best 10-12 combination over the past four years
It has been a remarkable and eventful four years for England since Eddie Jones took over in late 2015. They had reached a nadir in the professional ere before he arrived, failing to make it out of their pool at the World Cup on home soil.
After a brilliant showing with Japan in that tournament, Jones was given the task of resurrecting a country damaged on a scale not previously experienced. The new head coach started brilliantly, guiding his new team to a Grand Slam, a series whitewash in Australia and a record-equaling 18-match winning streak.
The run of results came to an end in 2017 when losing to Ireland, but there was still a second successive Six Nations title collected. A humbling 2018, where England only won six of their twelve matches, was a slump in the Australian’s tenure and his job was in jeopardy. But the following year saw a change of fortunes as England reached the recent World Cup final.
Certain intricacies define a turbulent four years. One of the primary changes Jones made was reintroducing Dylan Hartley to Test rugby and installing him as his captain. However, the most defining decision was perhaps moulding Owen Farrell as an inside centre and creating the much-discussed axis with George Ford at fly-half.
The notion of having two ball-playing fly-halves in the backline was something that Jones wanted, and Ford and Farrell complemented one another very well. Ford provided world-class distribution and attacking guile, while Farrell provided metronomic place-kicking, defensive strength and organisation. This was a unison and friendship that had dated back to their teenage years, as well as their time playing together for England under-20s.
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These two started 28 of England’s 50 Test games since the 2015 RWC, winning 79 per cent (W39 D1 L10) of their games. Only four other 10-12 combinations were used more than once. Farrell reverted back to fly-half to partner Manu Tuilagi on five occasions, winning three, losing one and drawing one. Ben Te’o also played alongside the England captain five times, winning four (80 per cent).
Ford, meanwhile, linked up with Piers Francis four times, winning three (75 per cent), and Alex Lozowski three times, winning all matches. Five other combinations were used just once, with a victory in every match. These saw Ford partner Luther Burrell and Henry Slade, Farrell partner Burrell and Francis, and Danny Cipriani partner Farrell. The Gloucester fly-half was the only other player to start at No10 during the Jones era, his inclusion coming in the third Test of the South African tour in 2018.
When looking at these figures, the Ford-Farrell combination was the second most successful of all that played over one game. While they are bettered by Ford’s link with Lozowski, those matches were against Argentina, Samoa and Japan. However, once again these stats only tell half the story as Jones’ term so far can be divided into individual segments: the success in 2016 and 2017, the slump in 2018 (chiefly the Six Nations that year), and a resurgence in late 2018 and 2019.
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The disastrous Six Nations campaign in 2018 could be seen as a watershed moment, whereby Jones abandoned the philosophy that had served him well and temporarily laid to rest the Ford-Farrell axis. After losing to both Scotland and France, Jones decided to alter his 10-12 combination, dropping Ford to the bench and deploying Farrell at 10 and Te’o at 12. Up until this point, Ford had started 26 of England’s 27 matches post-2015, having sat on the bench in the first Test of the series in Australia in 2016.
Before the campaign-ending Ireland match, Ford and Farrell had lined up alongside one another in 21 of 27 matches, winning 18 (86 per cent). Furthermore, during 2016 and 2017, they had started 17 of 23 matches, only losing one (94 per cent). This would have probably been higher, but Farrell was absent with the British and Irish Lions in 2017 and was subsequently rested for some games in the following autumn.
However, despite winning two matches, England had looked slow and impotent during the first four matches of the 2018 Six Nations. In a team that was struggling to gain any ascendency or front-foot ball, it was pointless to play with two playmakers, and the Ireland game signified the beginning of an approach by Jones to play a confrontational 12 to gain momentum. England did lose that Twickenham game, but it was a fork in the road where the national team’s set-up changed markedly.
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Jones opted to revert back to playing with two fly-halves for the 2018 tour of South Africa, but the first and second Tests would be the final time Ford and Farrell started together for over a year. Cipriani came in for the third Test and despite earning the win, didn’t feature again.
For the following autumn, Jones almost exclusively used a ball-carrying inside centre. Farrell and Te’o played against South Africa, the All Blacks and Australia, but the former league star was replaced by Tuilagi in the Six Nations (except for the match against Italy) and it seemed to strike a chord, particularly with Slade at outside centre, who can equally play fly-half.
This Farrell-Tuilagi option looked to be the one for England heading towards the RWC and while they did lose to Wales and draw to Scotland in 2019’s Six Nations, the display against Ireland at the Aviva Stadium seemed to cement their places in the team.
The 2019 Rugby World Cup has been a triumph for World Rugby and the people of Japan
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However, it was only in an RWC warm-up match against Ireland in August 2019 that Jones decided to reprise his favoured partnership of the Leicester Tigers fly-half and the Saracen. Behind a pack that had the dynamism of Tom Curry, Maro Itjoe and Sam Underhill and the brute strength of the Billy Vunipola and Kyle Sinckler, the once-neglected tandem thrived and England won 57-15 in ruthless fashion.
This did not necessarily mark a total return for Jones’ iconic duo, but it gave him options and the luxury of picking his team based on the opponents. The Ford-Farrell combination looked to be the first choice in Japan, although Francis was brought in at 12 against the USA. However, to counter the rampant Samu Kerevi, Jones utilised the defensively resolute Farrell-Tuilagi partnership in the quarter-final against Australia, bringing Ford back for the semi-final against the All Blacks and final versus the Springboks.
The very fact that Jones still rues the decision not to change this axis for a belligerent South African team shows how far England had come during his time at the helm. Such versatility was never really an option in the first two-and-a-half years of his tenure, and the irony is that it was his abundance of resources that was his undoing in the loss to Rassie Erasmus’ side, as he has admitted he may have made the wrong choice.
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He can be forgiven, particularly after such a sublime performance against the All Blacks, but the question will always remain whether this was Jones’ decision all along to eventually arrive back at the Ford-Farrell connection. It is hard to believe that it was during a torrid 2018 where England looked to have grown stale in a number of departments.
It must be noted, though, that Billy Vunipola only played 120 minutes of rugby across two Tests in 2018 – the two losses in South Africa (although he was still returning to fitness). The No8 is so crucial to England making ground and playing on the front-foot, hence why he played all 15 Tests in 2019. The stats are ostensibly clear that in his absence his team struggles.
Behind a retreating pack, it made sense that a more physical presence was needed in the 12 shirt. However, Billy’s return to fitness in 2019, as well as some tweaks to the pack, provided the platform for the Ford-Farrell combination to reign supreme again.
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To have a player injured for so long was never part of the plan, but Jones had always emphasised that his goal was for England to peak in Japan, which would have been every coach’s objective, so the four years prior would have been a case of trialling out every possible option he had.
That is perhaps why 2016 saw Ford and Farrell start together in eleven matches, six times in 2017, and five times in both 2018 and 2019. These decisions may have been mitigated by results, but Jones may have also wanted to experiment with different ideas.
After two years of implementing what he thought was going to be successful, he had another two to test out alternatives. Although it did seem like he had forsaken his preferred 10-12 axis at one point, it would have always remained at the back of his mind.
When looking back at the past four years, the Ford-Farrell combination has to be regarded as the most successful as they played and won more games than all the other partnerships combined. Although some others had a higher winning percentage, that is a misnomer due to the standard of the opposition. But it was not plain sailing for Ford and Farrell – or England as a whole – and after years of ebb and flow, it was only at the RWC that it was conclusively proven to be the best option.
WATCH: RugbyPass looks back on some of our favourite moments with the fans from the 2019 World Cup in Japan
Comments on RugbyPass
“But with an exceptional pass accuracy rating “ Which apart from Roigard is not a feature of any of the other 9s in NZ. Kind of basic for a Black 9 dont.you. think? Yet we keep seeing FC and TJ being rated ahead of him? Weird if it’s seen as vital to get our backline beating in your face defences.
1 Go to commentsThanks BeeMc! Looks like many teams need extra time to settle from the quadrennial northern migration. I think generally the quality of the Rugby has held up. Fiji has been fantastic and fun to watch
13 Go to commentsLets compare apples with apples. Lyon sent weak team the week before, but nobody raised an eyebrow. Give the South African teams a few years to build their depth, then you will be moaning that the teams are too strong.
41 Go to commentsDid footballs agents also perform the scout role at some time? I’m surprised more high profile players haven’t taken up the occupation, great way to remain in the game and use all that experience without really requiring a lot of specific expertise?
1 Go to commentsSuper rugby is struggling but that has little to do with sabbaticals. 1. Too many teams from Aust and NZ - should be 3 and 4 respectively, add in 2 from Japan, 1 possibly 2 from Argentina. 2. Inconsistent and poor refereeing, admittedly not restricted to Super rugby. Only one team was reffed at the breakdown in Reds v H’Landers match. Scrum penalty awarded in Canes v Drua when No 8 had the ball in the open with little defence nearby - ideal opportunity to play advantage. Coming back to Reds match - same scrum situation but ref played advantage - Landers made 10 yards and were penalised at the breakdown when the ref should have returned to scrum penalty. 3. Marketing is weak and losing ground to AFL and NRL. Playing 2 days compared with 4. 4. Scheduling is unattractive to family attendance. Have any franchises heard of Sundays 2pm?
11 Go to commentsAbsolutely..all they need is a chance in yhe playoffs and I bet all the other teams will be nervous…THEY KNOW HOW TO WIN IM THE PLAYOFFS..
2 Go to commentsI really hope he comes back and helps out with some coaching.
1 Go to commentsI think we are all just hoping that the Olympic 7s doesn’t suffer the same sad fate as the last RWC with the officials ruining the spectacle.
1 Go to commentsPersonally, I’ve lost the will to even be bothered about the RFU, the structure, the participants. It’s all a sham. I now simply enjoy getting a group of friends together to go and watch a few games a year in different locations (including Europe, the championship, etc). I feel extremely sorry for the real fans of these clubs who are constantly ignored by the RFU and other administrators. I feel especially sorry for the fans of clubs in the Championship who have had considerable central funding stripped away and are then expected to just take whatever the RFU put to them. Its all a sham, especially if the failed clubs are allowed to return.
9 Go to commentsI’m guessing Carl Hayman would have preferred to have stayed in NZ with benefit of hindsight. Up north there is the expectation to play twice as many games with far less ‘player management’ protocols that Paul is now criticising. Less playing through concussions means longer, healthier, careers. Carter used as the eg here by Paul, his sabbatical allowed him to play until age 37. OK its not an exact science but there is far more expectations on players who sign for Top 14 or Engl Prem clubs to get value for the huge salaries. NZR get alot wrong but keeping their best players in NZ rugby is not one of them. SA clubs are virtually devoid of their top players now, no thanks. They cant threaten the big teams in the Champions Cup, the squads have little depth. Cant see Canes/Chiefs struggling. Super has been great this year, fantastic high skill matches. Drua a fantastic addition and Jaguares will add another quality team eventually. Aus teams performing strongly and no doubt will benefit with the incentive of a Lions tour and a home RWC. Let Jordie enjoy his time with Leinster, it will allow the opportunity for another player to emerge at Canes in his absence.
11 Go to commentsLove that man, his way to despise angry little men is so funny ! 😂
4 Go to comments“South African franchises would be powerhouses if we had all our overseas based players back in situ. We would have the same unbeatable aura the Toulouses, Leinsters or Saracens of this world have had over the last decade or so.” Proof that Jake white does not understand the economics of the game in SA. Players earning abroad are not going to simply come back and represent the bulls. But they might if they have a springbok contract.
22 Go to commentsA lot of fans just joined in for the fun of it! We all admire O'Gara and what he has done for La Rochelle
4 Go to commentsThe RFU will find a way to mess this up as usual. My bet is there will be no promotion into the the Premiership, only relegation into National League One. Hopefully they won’t parachute failed clubs into the league at the expense of clubs who have battled for promotion.
9 Go to commentsWell that’s the contracts for RG and Jordie bought and paid for. Now, what are the chances we can persuade Antoine to hop over with all the extra dosh we’ll have from living at the Aviva & Croke next season…??? 🤑🤑🤑
35 Go to commentsWow, that’s incredible. Great for rugby.
35 Go to commentsYou probably read that parling is going to coach the wallaby lineout but if not before now you have.
17 Go to commentsIf someone like Leo Cullen was in O’Gara’s place I don’t hear Boo-ing. It’s not just that La Rochelle has hurt Leinster and O’Gara is their Irish boss. It’s the needle that he brings and the pantomime activity before the game around pretending that Munster were supporting LaRochelle just because O’Gara is from Cork. That’s dividing Irish provinces just to get an advantage for his French Team. He can F*ck right off with that. BOOOOO! (but not while someone is lying injured)
4 Go to commentsDid the highlanders party too hard before the game? They were the pits.
1 Go to commentsWhat a player! Not long until he’s in the England side, surely?
5 Go to comments