Saturday saw the first stutter of Martin Johnson’s reign as England coach. It was in truth a pretty unconvincing display from the men in white—the basics were poor, the decision-making worse at times, and the team lost direction badly in the second half, seemingly with little idea what to do against a sturdy, pragmatic Australia.
Leadership wasn’t a problem in those days
However, there were positive glimpses which suggest that, if some players can be a little more discerning in deciding when to display their youthful verve and enthusiasm, we could be on to something.
The positives were generally mitigated by negatives, but they are negatives which can be ironed out with the improved decision-making which comes with experience.
We tried to play some rugby, but we did it in between the 10 metre lines; we tried to keep the ball alive, but ended up throwing 50:50 passes; we tried to compete at the breakdown, but crossed the line into infringement all too often, especially in kick-able areas. Right intentions, wrong time and place.
Talent is one thing—there are many, many teams in the world who are much of a muchness in that department. Flashy back moves, the intention to chuck the ball around, to have 40 different lineout moves are all great. But knowing when to use them, or perhaps more importantly when not to, is key and it is this which is the harder skill to acquire.
When you are on the pitch in the heat of the moment, what is the correct call to make? That is when your ice-cool on-the-field decision-makers come to the fore, when you find out which players can cut through all the distractions and come up with the right call.
At present, this is what England lacks in spades. The quality that marks out the good from the average and the great from the good is the ability to figure out how to win a game come-what-may.
England’s 2003 World Cup side was a magnificent team but where they really stood out from their rivals was in their ability to win. Whatever needed to be done, the leaders on the pitch, of which they had plenty, knew what it was and how to do it.
Australia, the kings at getting the best from their resources, have always been excellent at this. The 2003 semi-final against New Zealand was a classic case where they decided exactly what sort of game they needed to drag the Kiwis into in order to win it, and carried it out ruthlessly.
In club rugby, Munster have been outstanding winners. In their tough Heineken Cup group last year, they got precisely what they required out of every game; two away bonus points at Wasps and Clermont Auvergne, and none conceded at home.
Their rivals took their eyes of the ball at key moments, dropped or conceded key bonus points, and were knocked out by a team who, on talent alone, should have been long gone. Munster went on to lift the trophy.
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