Analysis: Switching off costs England dear
Analysis: Switching off costs England dear
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By Darren Estwick. |  |
Sunday, 28, Feb 2010 05:04
By Lewis Bazley.
A few more minutes of firm defence, the width of a post or the angling of the referee's adjudicating arm -England's Grand Slam hopes could still be alive had the key moments gone their way at Twickenham on Saturday. But it need not have been so. Missed penalties from Jonny Wilkinson and a pivotal moment of indecision from Danny Care swung the balance back towards the Irish despite England's dominance in possession but these moments might have proved irrelevant had the home defence not parted as extravagantly as the Red Sea to allow Tommy Bowe to stride through for Ireland's winning try. Carelessness undermined a performance containing glimpses of the invention sorely missing from the deathly dull conquering of Italy and a failure to finish Ireland off saw England snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. Holding on for six minutes might have lifted England's belief in their ability to see off the strident France; the challenge now for Martin Johnson is to add a clinical face to the passion shown by his players on Saturday.
With self-belief must come self-control. Championship winning sides are defined by their discipline and clinical play and while Danny Care might not have done anything outside the law in hurling Tomas O'Leary to the ground, Irish heads remained focus in the aftermath of the melée that followed. It was the visitors who took a deep breath and returned to action and while England seethed about an overturned penalty, Ireland had the quick hands to send Earls crashing over in the corner.
If this English side are to overcome Scotland and a French side who look to be strolling towards a grand slam they will need to exhibit the strong will and positivity that kept them in the game after an Earls try that could have proved decisive. Their coach revealed the same determination while helping the 2003 England vintage to famous away wins against the Tri Nations and eventually the Webb Ellis Trophy, and he must imbue his 2010 charges with immense resolve if they are to react well to this most gutting of defeats.
The statistics will make sobering reading for Johnson and his charges as they reflect on a loss that means another year without a Triple Crown or Grand Slam. The hosts had 60 per cent possession but scored a solitary try to their opponents' three. And while England's relentless running saw Ireland make 99 tackles, Declan Kidney's side missed only one.
The build-up to England's only try confirmed the key issue that it is preventing England from progressing under Johnson namely the notable lack of a knock-out punch. As the man in white drove forward again and again, their verdant opponents held firm, repeatedly managing to "put the men the ground", as Paul O'Connell put it. The critics looked certain to lament a lack of quick ball as a huge shove from the English pack looked likely to have set up an overlap and a possible try only for the sadly familiar sight in recent years for English supporters of an opposition defence being given the time to regroup while England stuttered to move on from the tackle. Heads dropped around the venue formerly known as Fortress Twickenham, and you understood why - was it to be another of those days? But it looked to be game on after Leicester's Dan Coles mined over for his first international try to set up a marvellously tense final 20 minutes.
An English win looked frighteningly possible when Wilkinson slotted a drop goal to give the hosts the lead for the first time. Yes, there were missed kicks from Wilkinson, many within the range he used to find achieve with ease. But there were also line breaks, speedy offloads to his three quarters and an anticipatory attacking stance lacking previously in the championship. The drop goal that have England the lead in the 71st minute was expertly taken, a reminder that for all the detractors, Wilkinson still reminds a world-class fly-half of metronomic reliability.
Sadly, crucially, the same can't yet be said for the England of Johnson's tenure as coach, undoing all of their good work by allowing Bowe to crash through for Ireland's second try - the Lion's run was direct and powerful but not to the extent that he should have been allowed to stroll through four English attempts at tackles. When England took the lead, fans would have been biting their nails in hope they could hold on for a win; after Bowe restored Ireland's dominance, you never doubted last year's Grand Slam winners would emerge victorious.
That's the difference between the sides and the biggest challenge for Johnson. It's all very well knocking your opponent down - you have to keep him there.