Mitchell vows not to take winning run for granted
JOHN MITCHELL insists England refuse to be seduced by their fourTest winning run against Ireland as they prepare to face relentless opposition in Dublin on Saturday.
The rivals clash in their final outings of the 2021 Guinness Six Nations, with Eddie Jones’ team looking to build on the 23-20 victory over France in round four that has rescued their championship from disaster.
England’s last loss in the fixture came in 2018 and since then Ireland have struggled to match their physicality, but defence coach Mitchell insists past results will be meaningless when the countries clash for the 138th time.
“You never have Ireland’s number. They’re a tenacious side and a tenacious country,” Mitchell said.
“They fight bloody hard for each other. They’ll rip in, there’s no doubt about that. But we’re ready for all that.
“They’ll see the breakdown as an opportunity against us. It’s going to be a war at the breakdown which is something we’re ready for.
“It comes down to being able to get on to the front foot and being able to implant how we want to play the game.
“We have to get on to the front foot and stop their momentum.”
France’s Grand Slam march was ended by a mixture of attacking endeavour and resilience, but Jones has cautioned against the expectation that England will be able to show similar enterprise against Ireland.
It is a theme continued by Mitchell following a training week in which extra time has been spent honing aerial skills.
“We want to perform well and finish positively as a group. This game will be somewhat different to the last Test match,” Mitchell said.
“This game is going to be highly unstructured with a lot of kicking in the air and it will be very physical. It will certainly challenge us and them in different ways.
“What will actually unfold in the game is based around the characteristics that exist within the opposition.
“At scrum-half they’ve picked Conor Murray, who is excellent with his box kicking, and they’ve shown a tendency on advantage to go to the air as well, so we’re under no illusions what to expect.
“Ireland will rely on crumbs which can come from the aerial contest. That’s probably the area where everyone will have to be most alert.”