Multiple ball carriers confused French and can repeat in Cardiff

Irresistible momentum founded on dynamic way England exposed opposition’s back three

Ashout of “Hurry up, we want to get to the bar” accompanied the painfully lengthy final scrum of the England v France game yesterday. The unexpectedly flat ending threatened to obscure the fantastic work done by a rampant England in the first 55 minutes. But a plethora of substitutions and a lack of accuracy in the final stages should not overshadow what was another outstanding performance.

You can say it was aided by aberrant selections of the French back three; that several of their players are not fit enough; you can point to a non-existent game plan. None of these are the fault of England and even had France got it right in these areas, the intensity and intelligence of England’s first-half display would have beaten their opponents.

Though it might not be apparent to casual watchers, England’s irresistible momentum was founded on the way in which they varied the players who took the ball into contact. Dynamic runners such as Billy Vunipola and Manu Tuilagi were not the only carriers who prospered. For almost all the first half, England got beyond the initial contact point because they posed the French defence multiple problems of who to pick up and where.

When a side do this repeatedly, I do not care who the opposition are, they are going to struggle. Add in that many French forwards seemed only interested in running when they were going forward, and you get an ideal platform. This would not have been enough to create victory on its own, but England used it very effectively.

It is one thing knowing that the French had a back three all playing out of their favoured positions, it is another to understand the way to exploit it and then to execute the strategy. England’s half-backs did this repeatedly. To this you must add the option brought by winger Jonny May’s speed. As a conscious ploy or even as an afterthought, a well-placed and weighted kick that turns into a foot race for May is a potent weapon. It might, as it did yesterday, produce tries, but at the very least it puts defenders in the most difficult of positions, having to gather the ball near their own line under severe pressure.

Can England do it again in Cardiff? The key is the way in which they use their ball carriers. Get that right again and Wales will struggle to cope on the back foot; as any side do.

What balances out home advantage is the fact that the first-choice Welsh XV will not have played together throughout the first two games. And, how well their half-backs manage the game.

Contrast England’s position to that of Ireland, the heavy pretournament favourites. It is becoming apparent that Ireland paid a physical, psychological and emotional price for their ascent to the top of world rugby in 2018. The sustained focus, crowned by the joy of the momentous home win over the All Blacks, has taken its toll. All this is unfamiliar territory and that must be considered as well as injuries and the altered context of being favourites and everybody’s No 1 target. They have only lost their opening game of this Six Nations but their performances have been flat and uninspiring.

A well-placed and weighted kick that turns into a foot race for Jonny May is a potent weapon

This Irish squad have the most depth of any assembled and yet they are finding out that while they have players who can come in and do a job, certain players are needed for the team to function optimally. Witness England: they can cope without Billy Vunipola but they are appreciably better with him. Some players, some combinations, enhance a team disproportionately; even players of similar ability cannot simply be interchanged.

Ireland’s game has now been scrutinised over 18 months. Teams not only know that their tactical kicking game is pivotal but why; how it affects games and how to try to counter it. There is no reason to think they have peaked too early. However, adjustments are needed and their absent players need to return to full fitness and form for these to be properly worked into the Irish game before the World Cup. I am sure Joe Schmidt either realised this would be so or is now aware of the need to recapture the spirit of calculated risk and innovation that the best sides retain, as well as efficiency.

The performances in Ireland’s last three games of this tournament, and form of their star players, are more important than the results. Scrapping out wins will keep pride intact but Ireland’s sights are set higher and to get there they need to evolve their tactical approach.