ENGLAND HAVE A good coach, a young team, and a home World Cup to look forward to.
The late loss to France three weeks ago was a blow, but optimism levels are at their highest since the days of Woodward, Wilkinson and Johnson.
They haven’t won a championship under Stuart Lancaster but he’s making steady progress. He’s stoic, ethical and likeable, and has built the team in his own image. He likes to eliminate variables and play a percentages game.
He says he chooses players as much based on character as on talent — why then has this risk averse coach backed the biggest wild card in English rugby?
Lancaster has been as good as his word when it comes to team selection. Chris Robshaw is his captain, a solid dependable man who gets referees on his side. Tom Wood and Mike Brown have become regulars thanks to their consistency and mental strength, as well as their talent.
He hasn’t been afraid to jettison trouble makers either. Danny Care was dropped after being charged with drink driving. Delon Armitage hasn’t been near an English squad since he was arrested for an alleged altercation at a nightclub. Meanwhile Dylan Hartley, the least disciplined player in English rugby, seems to be the one exception to the rule.
Hartley was born in New Zealand, came to England when he was a teenager and quickly built a reputation both for his aggression and dynamism, but also for his lack of self control. Over the years he’s been banned for gouging, biting, and punching — the anger management trifecta. Last week he claimed the bad old days were behind him, but as recently as last year’s Premiership final he called referee Wayne Barnes a f****** cheat, got sent off, got kicked off the Lions tour and received another lengthy ban.
He lost his place to Tom Youngs last season mainly due to injury, but besides that he has almost always been first choice. He is a very good rugby player, but this isn’t Alex Ferguson backing Eric Cantona after the kung-fu kick. Hartley isn’t in the unreplaceable flawed genius category. At his best he’s a slight improvement on Youngs so you have to wonder about England’s risk-reward matrix.
With only a year and a half to go to the World Cup, Lancaster must now believe his number one hooker has mended his ways. Its a bit like the gangster that tries to retire from a life of crime, though. He really wants to go clean, live the quiet life, but then his old buddies try to get him involved in one more dodgy heist, one that will make him rich for life, and he can’t quite resist.
What’s for sure is Hartley is currently playing the best rugby of his career, and hasn’t put a foot wrong since the summer. The same goes for Danny Care, Lancaster’s second biggest gamble. The scrum half’s problems have mainly been off the pitch. In 2012 he was charged with drink driving, dropped from the England set up and was then banned from driving for 16 months. On a night out in Leeds he was arrested againand cautioned for being drunk and disorderly. Throw in a fine from Harlequins and that’s a bad year by any standards.
Lancaster has shown he can bend the rules a little depending on the characters involved, and when it comes to producing performances the results speak for themselves. Care and Hartley have been two of his most reliable players this season.
While Hartley is an integral part of a good English pack, Care is a match winner on his own. He’s the most gifted English scrum half since Austin Healey, and you can understand why his coaches have given him a second chance.
In his short time as head coach Lancaster has had to deal with a surprisingly large number of wayward, but so far he seems to have got it right.
In Ireland he faces the most disciplined team in the championship, and crucially, one that contains men who know how to push buttons. It won’t be an explicit part of any Irish game plan, but its not hard to imagine O’Connell or O’Mahony or Chris Henry having a quiet word together this week.
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Hartley just has a face, with a punchable quality.
haha completely true but the fcucking cheat incident was funny
Hartley and Ashton they look so alike ……. Separated at birth perhaps
Marler, Hartley and Lawes all yellow card candidates. might be the difference between the two teams…I’d imagine they will be out to wind up POM the Welsh fairly flustered him at times and he is a game changer
I assume England will also be looking for weak links in the Ireland team in terms of both temperament and technique.
We know Dallaglio said Sexton would be physically targeted in the hope of forcing him off early (although the gap between Sexton and Jackson in terms of skill isn’t the chasm it once was).
It would be interesting toi get an article or even just other people’s thoughts about where England may feel they can get one over on us.
Watch out for an off the ball tussle between Hartley and Best as English frustration levels grow.
Not to worry though, Rory can handle himself just fine.
My monwy is on Hartley & Healy will come to blows at some point.
I think you skim over just how big the gap in ability is between Hartley and Tom Youngs. Whenever Youngs comes on their line out literally disintegrates. Hartley is playing to a world class standard but I think if they had a decent alternative he wouldn’t have had the chance to come this far.
Too right Adam. Hartley is dislikeable but hes heads and shoulders above Youngs
Should forget about trying to wind up Hartley and concentrate on winning the match. It will be difficult enough as it is. England are a very good team and were unlucky against France in Paris. They have a great defense so kicking will be important. I think this is what Dallaglio was referring to becasue Sexton sometimes can be hit and miss e.g. the final kick against NZ. He will need protection though.
Tuilagi will be given the ball at every opportunity to try and punch through off the ruck and scrum. This game will be a bruiser. Hope the Subs are up to it cos they will be needed pity We Tommy Bowe injured as we could do with some backup through the centre.
Tuilagi is still injured, not named in the match day squad. Billy vunipola is the one to watch out for.
JP you really don’t have a clue do you?
Sexton is the highest paid player in European rugby for a reason, hit and miss?
Oh yeah the kick v NZ proves he’s flaky, one kick, I could quote another “one kick” to prove the bottle the man has but I’d upset half the people on here.
Cop yourself on and support Ireland or don’t bother and wait until the HC and follow rugby then and it seems that’s where your priorities lie
Chris – are you a moron or do you just not bother to read? I said the following.
1: Forget about concentrating on Hartley. Ireland should concentrate on the bigger picture and winning the match and not focus in on one particular element that may or may not be part of the game.
2: The England defense is one of the best in the world so the game will in all probability come down to a kicking one. Sexton needs protection (I said that above but you didn’t bother reading!!) but he did miss the wining kick versus NZ (which he did – maybe you don’t remember it). Maybe it will have nothing to do with kickers anyway on Saturday – who knows?
3: I thought Tuilagi was playing but Elizabeth corrected me. Fair play – I stand corrected. Point remains the same. Vunipola same type of player and I think we could do with extra cover in middle especially when bodies get tired in second half.
Lastly so what if Sexton is most expensive player in Europe. That means jack s**t to be honest. By the tone of your reply you’re one of the smallest brains in this country.
Vunipola is a no 8 and Tuilagi plays as a centre, not too sure if I’d class them as a similar type of player.