FROM THE HUNTED TO HUNTERS!
Ex-coach Lancaster impressed England are peaking at right time
STUaRT Lancaster has declared his admiration for the way England have become savvy hunters in their pursuit of this year’s Guinness Six nations title.
Eddie Jones’ predecessor as head coach guided the national team to four consecutive runners-up finishes in the annual championship, from 2012-2015.
now respected at Leinster, he has viewed the current tournament with divided loyalties, due to his connections on both sides of the Irish Sea.
But after England’s victories over 2018 champions Ireland and a hapless France, Lancaster has recognised how they have responded to the shock of their fifth-place finish last year.
asked if that was merely a blip, he said: ‘Yeah, I think so. It’s amazing, the motivation of being the hunted or the hunter; how it affects teams. certainly, people were after England last year in the same way that people are after Ireland this year.
‘England have played that role well so far. I think England played well in the Ireland game, they played well against France and I think the Wales game will be a pivotal one in the Six nations.
‘Wales have just sat there quietly in the background winning their games. It’s a very tricky place to go and win.’
Lancaster knows all too well how tough it can be to go to cardiff with grand ambitions. In 2013, he took his England squad there with a Slam in their sights but they endured a record 30-3 defeat. however, that was at an early stage of their evolution.
Many of the same players are still involved and the man who introduced them to Test rugby believes they are reaching their prime at just the right time, given what lies ahead in the autumn this year.
‘You can see the growth of the team,’ said Lancaster (below). ‘I think we said from the start that the reality is this England team should peak in 2019. It was always a race against time for 2015, but by 2019 you could see the age profile, the quality of the players and the experience they would have, it should be their time.
‘I see particularly the likes of henry Slade and guys like that who were all on the pathway, the starting point. all the lads who are on 50 caps were on zero caps when I started.’
The way Sunday’s game against France at Twickenham unfolded was clear proof of how so many of the England players have gained international know- how — the savvy streak to complement their fervent hunter’s mentality. It was especially evident in the way the decision-makers and footballers in the back-line unlocked the shambolic French defence with an astute kicking game which created five of the six English tries. Lancaster watched on, suitably impressed. ‘They’re obviously doing their homework and understanding that there’s always space on a rugby field,’ he said. ‘They were good at exploiting the space. Especially against France, who were so disorganised in the back field. There was sometimes nobody there, so obviously any kick is going to be a threat. ‘You’ve got a lot of rugby intellect on the field, you’ve got two left-
footers in Elliot Daly and Henry Slade — and Henry used to be a 10 and can play 12. You’ve got Owen Farrell in there and Ben Youngs, who has 60-70 caps.
‘So England have some very good kicking options at the moment. The way teams have defended, they have seen the space in behind and kicked it there, which is common-sense, really.
‘If teams defend differently sometimes kicking is not the best option. We played Toulouse in the Heineken Champions Cup and they had three in the back-field all the time and all their tries came from counter-attacks. So what you don’t want to do against them is kick the ball, or at least not kick it to them. You need to make it contestable.
‘It’s about being adaptable to the opposition. If they have the back-field loaded, you take on the front-line. If there’s nobody in the back-field, then clearly you want to kick the ball to where the space is. And that is what England have done well in both games — particularly against France.’
Meanwhile, London Irish yesterday confirmed the signing of Leinster’s Ireland and Lions flanker Sean O’Brien — a major transfer coup.
The 31-year-old will join the promotionchasing Championship club in December after taking part in Ireland’s World Cup campaign.
‘I’ll roll up the sleeves and use my experience to re- establish London Irish as a top club in England,’ he said.