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Martin Johnson
The choice of fly half by Martin Johnson for the World Cup will betray his intentions as he travels into the dragons lair to take what the All Blacks believe is rightfully theirs from under their noses.
Be it Wilkinson or his main rival for the job, Toby Flood, either man will be responsible for dictating the pace of the an England side that has both Rolls Royce’s in the back line and wrecking balls up front, but which man wears ten will decide which group will remain criminally under used in New Zealand.
Wilkinson’s metronomic boot is likely to get the nod over Flood, who has fallen desperately out of form, and with that, England fans can expect a tournament of toil and attrition rather than flair and cutting edge.
England gave the attacking game a crack of the whip last year, and for the most part it worked. A valiant defeat against New Zealand in the autumn internationals was followed up with a second successive win over Australia.
Then came the mauling at the hands of South Africa and Ireland. Members of the England squad have openly admitted they had believed they would steamroll a Springboks side that had come undone against Scotland the week before.
This game has taken on greater significance than it should have done. It appears to have marked a point in Johnson’s thinking that when the going gets tough, it’s time to shut up shop. Johnson had his fingers burned against Ireland as well as Flood and his much heralded back line stuttered and stalled. These types of games have shaped England’s World Cup.
Pragmatism is now the name of the game for Johnson. There will be no more delusions of grandeur that England will run the ball from all parts in New Zealand, the ball will remain narrow as the red rose of England is coated in steel.
That is not to say this isn’t the best plan for Johnson; he has only two specialist wingers to call upon, a midfield that can only dream of demonstrating some of the dynamism of Sonny Bill Williams, say, and a pack which to its credit, is utterly brutish.
This limited approach will get England so far in the World Cup. It will do for some clubs as they ram rod their way to victories, but how it will cope in the face of something more free form is a different matter. The side that ran the ball against Australia and Wales and Italy in the 6 Nations will be nowhere to be seen this autumn.
England will structure their game around keeping the ball close to the pack, driving forward through the midfield rather than around the opposition. Perhaps Johnson has admitted that his side has limitations, something he isn’t at fault at. He has already admitted a defeat of sorts in that respect. One can only hope that another defeat is following close behind- perhaps the Black World Cup Shirt England wore against Wales could be apt. A part of English rugby which threatened to flourish has been suffocated.
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