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England v France Prediction
Author: Thomas Rooney 06/10/2011
England and France meet in the Rugby World Cup quarter-finals this weekend and it is likely to be an intense affair from start to finish. It may not be one of the most attractive games of rugby you will ever see, but just try and take your eyes off it.
It has been a strange tournament for England so far. On the pitch they have won all four games, showing the big tournament mentality we now associate them with. Quite simply, they get the job done and this was highlighted in the most recent win against Scotland.
Martin Johnson’s men were on the back foot for much of the match, but managed to pull through. A Chris Ashton try late on handed England the win and broke Scottish hearts.
It has been suggested that England are the rugby equivalent of the German football team and you can see why. It is nothing too flashy, but more often than not, progress to the latter stages of a major tournament.
This isn’t the worst thing either. England have been heavily criticised for their performances, but somewhat harshly so. They have won four games, scored plenty of tries and conceded hardly any.
So, on the pitch, despite not being totally convincing at times, everything has gone according to plan. The problem lies in the player behaviour off the pitch and the negative headlines this has brought.
It started with a night-out after the win against Argentina and has included inappropriate comments to a female staff member at the team’s hotel.
These incidents have led to England coach Johnson reprimanding his players and pundits heavily criticising the team’s approach to life in New Zealand.
Other than acting as quite embarrassing for England on the whole, these controversies have made one thing essential – victory over France in Saturday’s quarter-final clash. Can you even imagine the reaction if England lost?
Not only is the quarter-finals of the World Cup not far enough for a team like England to progress, but if the off the field behaviour is combined with a defeat to France – all hell could break loose.
That’s perhaps why England have selected Jonny Wilkinson to start. He may not have had the best tournament so far, but he is a leader, he is reliable and he brings great cohesion to the team.
Wilkinson was originally picked ahead of Toby Flood of course, but Flood will now take his place in the team too after Mike Tindall failed to recover from a league injury in time to be considered.
It is going to be a tense 80 minutes or so, but at the moment, a narrow England victory – something which has become a very familiar result – is perhaps the most likely if they can remain focused throughout.
England v France gets underway at 8:30am on Saturday morning.
England v France Prediction: England on the Handicap with Tie -4.0 at 10/11 with bet365
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