Will Greenwood and Sir Ian McGeechan Tactical dossier
Will Greenwood England have yet to find their best form, so they need to learn from their mistakes, play to their strengths and focus only on the day Sir Ian McGeechan Scotland are the most improved side in the championship, and if they keep the game fas
GET A SOLID START There is a good reason England have been talking up their ‘finishers’ recently. Their starts have been dreadful. We might as well call the replacements ‘escape artists’ or ‘bullet dodgers’ because that is the role they have had to play.
At half-time in their three games, England have been losing twice and drawing once. Eddie Jones has needed his bench to come on and do the business. You can only do that so many times before someone will make you pay. Jean-Marc Doussain missed a simple kick to touch for France. Italy lacked the bench or the lungs to go again when they got it back to 17-15. Jonathan Davies’s poor kick to touch allowed Elliot Daly to score the match-winning try against Wales.
But England’s luck will not last for ever. Their kicking has been particularly poor; the kicking out of their own half, the box kicks, the kicks to space. They have just invited pressure on themselves.
The contagion has spread to other parts of their game. The accuracy we saw last year has been there only in patches. We cannot just talk about ‘ruck-gate’ against Italy, the all-round performance in the first half was desperate: loose passes, Owen Farrell kicking it dead from a penalty, knock-ons. England badly need a start.
PLAY WITH TEMPO
There might be a thought that Scotland are a bit lighter. That they have a very good back line. So, stick it up the jumper? I do not think so. England are so much better when they play with tempo. I would keep it simple but play with pace. Be accurate at the set-piece and breakdown and the rest will follow.
When England are accurate they can score points fast. That is why I am happy to see Eddie keep faith with George Ford. Give him good front-foot ball and he is the best ball-playing 10 in the northern hemisphere.
England need to get the line-out going – keep the tempo high and then every now and then drain the opposition legs by driving mauls from line-outs.
USE NOWELL
I am delighted to see Jack Nowell starting. The balance of England’s back division has been wrong so far: either too many smashers or too many dancers.
Nowell is not huge but he packs a punch. He plays like a league man. I love him. Get him on the ball as much as possible. He has the ability to beat men one-on-one and his defensive work is outstanding. If Nowell is getting lots of touches, if he is nibbling away, then England win.
It is good, too, to see the Vunipola brothers on the bench. Their ability to offload under pressure was integral to the way England played last year. Nathan Hughes is developing into a great No 8 but Billy V is world class. This is also a huge game for Dylan Hartley. He is the centrepiece of everything England do at the setpiece; the scrum, throwing in at the line-out. This is the game when he can either play himself into the Lions team or crack.
FORGET RECORDS
England will not be thinking about world records – nor should they. They have been poor in this tournament. There are no two ways about it. It is almost as if they have been treading water. The lads who won 3-0 in Australia, who won in Paris and smashed South Africa, need to stand up now.
Scotland are certainly dangerous. Ben Youngs’s box kicks will have to be on the money because Stuart Hogg, Tommy Seymour and Tim Visser can run it back and then some.
Their midfield is a real threat. You have got Alex Dunbar, who is probably the most destructive 12 in the Six Nations in terms of disrupting opposition attacks. England have to try to get decoys on him and attack his inside or outside shoulder. Get either side of him.
England’s shortside defence is going to have to be accurate. We saw Russell and Hogg put Visser away against Wales.
But Scotland have an Achilles heel: being able to control their own scrums and getting bogged down in the tight channels. England will have seen Scotland’s trip to Paris, where they were beaten up in the scrum.
The way I see it, Scotland will need to be 10 points clear with five minutes to play because this England side are like Glenn Close in Fatal
Attraction: you have got to kill them off or they will keep
coming back.
SCRUM PARITY
I suspect England may try to go route one; dominate the set-piece, slow it down, and then try to play off their powerful ball carriers. Losing Alasdair Dickinson and W P Nel has definitely hurt Scotland at scrum time. We saw that against France.
The answer for Scotland is to try not to give England too many scrums. Thankfully, that is within their gift. If they do not make mistakes – if they do not knock-on, if they are accurate – they can keep the scrums to a minimum.
On the flipside, the two props who are playing – Gordon Reid and Zander Fagerson – are very mobile with good hands and a high work rate. That is the game Scotland want to play; a high-tempo one.
If they can achieve parity at the scrums they have an excellent chance of making that work for them.
INVOLVE BACK THREE
If the weather is good and it is a high-tempo game, that will suit Scotland. There is no doubt Scotland are the team who have improved most at this championship. I have lost count of the number of people who have come up to me during the course of the tournament and told me how much they are enjoying watching Vern Cotter’s team. They play a really exciting game with quick and accurate release from the breakdown. They are prepared to attack the tight channels to free up runners on the outside. Scotland’s back three have been outstanding. I thought against Wales, particularly, their decision-making, when to pass when to kick to their wings, was exceptional. Tim Visser had his best game in a Scotland shirt and totally outplayed George North. He is a real threat against England, whose back three are not the biggest. Put a few balls up there and see if he can cause problems.
HIGH WORK-RATE
There is no doubt the start will be crucial. Scotland will be desperate to get points on the board early. Just to keep the confidence and momentum they have built up in this championship going as much as anything.
As I said, I think England will kick for territory, put the pressure on and try to get penalties and clock up points. The kicking game will be hugely important. Owen Farrell, if he is fit, will not have such a poor game again.
Scotland need to exit their own half well and to be accurate at the breakdown. This has not been England’s greatest strength. Their back row of Maro Itoje, James Haskell and Nathan Hughes have played as individuals rather than as a unit.
Scotland must try to take advantage. The back five of their scrum have been playing out of their skin. The Grays have been putting in 50-plus tackles per game between them – extraordinary. They will need to put in another huge shift. They have to deny England momentum, keep their half-backs under pressure.
Finn Russell, as well as being very good with ball in hand, is excellent at attacking that 10 channel. If he can keep the pressure on George Ford that will make a big difference because Ford is hugely dangerous if he is given any time and space. You get runners off him and then England’s big ball carriers get involved.
Russell outplayed Dan Biggar against Wales and will have to be similarly clinical. If Scotland get a penalty, they must convert it. Build the pressure.
MANAGE THE BENCH
England’s unbeaten run will be a factor. The fact they are at home. The fact they are unbeaten in over a year. The fact they have the stronger bench. They know they are never out of it. They know they can score points quickly. Scotland will have to play for the full 80 minutes and that is going to require some huge shifts.
Scotland have to get in front, preferably two scores, because England are likely to end the game in the ascendant.
How Vern Cotter manages his own bench will be critical to the outcome. He managed it very well against Wales. If Scotland have momentum, I think we could find Cotter leaves quite a few of his substitutions until far later in the game. Some players he would normally take off might even have to be prepared to go the full 80.
Scotland cannot afford to worry about Twickenham, about England’s run, about their own chances of a Triple Crown or even the championship. And I do not think they will. Their focus has been excellent over the past 18 months, for which Cotter deserves huge credit. They have a clear game plan and they go out there to produce that. They must believe they can do it.