Are you tired of the sardonic smile of Owen Farrell, the English flyhalf (or center) and scorer? Well Steve Borthwick got rid of it for you. More exactly, the new coach of the XV de la Rose signed the most symbolic act of his beginning of mandate, released during this Six Nations Tournament and less than a year from the World Cup: he relegated to the bench the emblematic captain of the era Eddie Jones for the reception of France, Saturday at Twickenham. Unheard of in an important match since 2015.
The former Leicester coach had however confirmed Farrell in his duties upon his arrival at the helm. But the mediocre start to the competition from the 30-year-old with 104 selections (barely 47% success on the foot) convinced him to start the young Marcus Smith (24) against the Blues. The unpredictable opening half of Harlequins returns to grace after being lined up in the inaugural home defeat against Scotland (23-29) then making stealth entries in the successes against Italy (31-14) and in Wales (10-20), before being sent home.
This waltz-hesitation in such a strategic position, which is reminiscent of the sad hours of the XV of France, sums up the fog in which our best enemy has been struggling since the final of the 2019 World Cup lost against South Africa ( 32-12). Still first in the 2020 Tournament, England followed up with an infamous 5th place and an anonymous 3rd position the following two years.
At the same time, the Habs, winners of the Grand Slam last year, regained the hair of the beast after a horrible 2010 decade. The November 2022 tour, marked by an unprecedented home loss against Argentina (29-30), sealed the fate of the very demanding but also exhausting Jones, who has since bounced back at home at the head of the Wallabies.
Only 6th in the world ranking
“Eddie Jones had problems with the players, there was no more membership, judge Yannick Nyanga, new consultant on France Télévisions, who commented on the English matches against Scotland then in Cardiff. Borthwick [ancien adjoint de Jones] explained that he had recovered a very marked team. He gave the players freedom, that of making a few more passes. He also rejuvenated the workforce, for example by dismissing Billy Vunipola. I feel him very close to his men. »
For now, it’s still not very bright on the side of the only world champions to date from the northern hemisphere (in 2003), relegated to 6th place in the World Rugby rankings. What necessarily whet the appetite of Fabien Galthié and his men before setting out to conquer Twickenham, which has not yielded under the French assaults since 2005 (17-18). Asked about the subject this Thursday in Marcoussis, the coach of the Blues however took out the violins.
It is the temple of world rugby, where this sport was born. The English team is magnificent, even if it performs less than in previous years. But even an unperforming English team are among the giants. When we name the giants of world rugby, the English are there, whether they are at their top level or in more difficult times. And then there is what we love about them: we respect them because they are proud, proud.
OK, but what are they really worth? Is it necessary to be as severe as Dmitri Yachvili in Noon Olympic, when the hero of the 2005 feat, author of the 18 tricolor points at the foot, evokes a team which has “stagnant” since 2019. The “Yach” speaks of a “gap” with the game offered by the Irish, the Scots and even the Italians. Or even a team that simply offered “10 interesting minutes against the Blacks during the last tour, especially on the offensive level. But apart from that, nothing, or not much.
“I don’t agree even if they are not in a good period,” replies Nyanga, also present during the last victory in London, 18 years ago. The former 3rd international line recalls the series won in Australia last summer, and speaks of “a good team, in reconstruction”.
A very large tank
“I liked what I saw in the first match against Scotland, their game intentions. Unfortunately, it did not smile on them. Against the Welsh, it was much more closed, with footwork, but the English had the result they hoped for. They experience huge slumps in the matches even if they start rather well. They also have a concern for efficiency. We feel a lack of confidence, but they have the players to annoy a lot of teams. »
Because unlike the Welsh in full decline, the heirs of Jonny Wilkinson can rely on a very enviable tank. “Ellis Genge is the best left prop in the world with Cyril Baille, and their best player”, indicated Nyanga even before knowing that “Baby Rhino” had been named captain after the dismissal of Farrell, that the manager of Espoirs du Racing 92 also called for his wishes because Marcus Smith “brings uncertainty”.
“At the scrum, Van Poortvliet can quickly become the taulier, he adds. I find his kicking game very, very good, and it fits well with what Borthwick wants. Their 3rd line wing Ludlam blew me away as a running back. I also liked Chessum in the 2nd line. And they still have safe bets like Maro Itoje and Jamie George. »
Thibaud Flament, who knows the subject like the back of his hand for having played at Wasps before the decrepitude of the Coventry club, also wants to prevent any excess of confidence, which is always unwelcome before going to challenge our winners from Agincourt and Waterloo. “England remains a very dangerous team even if it has been in the hard, asserts the 2nd line of Toulouse from the XV of France. We know that she is able to refocus on specific, basic things, to revive herself. »
Towards a soporific “crunch”?
This is precisely what Nyanga foresees. “Despite Borthwick’s ambitions in the game, they are a team that needs results. I don’t see them taking too many risks against a lethal French team. It would be suicide. There will be a lot of footwork. It will be a game of chess in order to end up with possession of the ball in the opposing camp. “As long as we can beat the successors of Will Carling and his horrifying “Sorry Good game”, even by a score of 6-3 or 12-9, we want to doze for 80 minutes.