Will Greenwood England need space, snarl and simplicity

Follow this blueprint and Ireland’s bandwagon can be derailed at Twickenham today

Passes are not offloads – and you need both

England’s losing streak comes down to one core failing: as a team they have not attacked space, or created space, when taking contact.

One statistic from England’s loss against France highlights the scale of the issue: the first time that an England forward made an offload, when they actually stood up in a tackle and shifted the point of contact, occurred in the 76th minute of the match.

Now you may say that the England forwards made plenty of passes, and you’d be right. But passes are not offloads. The offload is all about getting beyond the tackler, winning the contact and then putting another player into space. Passes can, more often than not, happen a long way behind the gain line and in a lateral direction, as England have found out to their detriment.

If there is no offloading in heavy traffic, it becomes easy to defend. The players on the fringes have a simple set of choices. They set early in their channels and look forward to a big hit.

They know the England forwards are coming either straight on or one out, looking for head-on contact. They get on their toes and as England’s scrum-half releases the ball, they can charge forward. They either go forward and smash the ball free, or wrap up the ball carrier in a double tackle or let one defender make the hit and then back up their pal, hunting for the ball. This is why England were so destroyed at the breakdown.

The loss of Billy Vunipola highlights this failing even more. He is one of the world’s best at carrying and offloading in close quarter contact. Putting Billy back into the side when fit would solve a lot of the current problems.

England are overthinking things under pressure

Faced with the losses and the ratcheting up in pressure, England have compounded their space problem by overthinking it.

A great example of this against France was the use of pull-backs. This involves two, ideally three players, operating three-to-four metres from the breakdown. The middle man is usually a big lump, who receives the ball and then has to decide between three options: smash into the opposition; tip the ball onto the next man; or pull the ball back to the fly-half or a similar player tucked in behind the two front men and go wide.

The thinking against France was, presumably, that it would get them away from the huge home pack and allow them to attack wider channels, with the main aim being generating pace wherever possible. Instead, it was a mess.

The first option saw England get absolutely clattered. Players were standing still, with too many options in their heads, and deciding late to keep hold of the ball and run, by which time the opposition were shutting them down, which left them vulnerable at the breakdown. The second option was rarely used and just as bad. The last option was complicated by poor handling in the opening 40 minutes.

When England had control of the game, they invited France back into the match thanks to the ponderous nature of their handling.

France sniffed their opportunity and flooded through. The defensive pressure increased on England and their handling worsened. The pull-back is hard enough to execute when a team is full of confidence. When it is under pressure it can increase the stress levels and create confusion and indecision.

They need to better protect their own ball

I went through tape of the France game on Monday to see just how bad England’s discipline was.

They gave away 13 penalties – 14 if you include the penalty try. However, of the 13 penalties, seven were conceded while England had the ball. This is a symptom of the space and gain line issue, not the actions of an undisciplined team.

England were slow to look after their runners, they were hit hard

and they ran poor lines in tight. As a result, they had to hang on, or overprotect their own ball. It was poor, but it was not a loose England team who rode roughshod over law books.

It is not enough just to work very hard

Paul O’connell called the breakdown the “heartbeat of the game” and he is right. It dictates the ebb and flow, the rhythm. At the moment, England are a beat off the pace. It’s almost as if the urgency has been lost.

But is this really the case? Are England’s players suddenly a yard lazier? No. This is an England team that put in proper shifts on the park. After an incredible two-year run of wins, they have not suddenly become a lazy side.

England’s runners are failing to make gains, not spotting space, making it too easy to be picked off. The problem isn’t that the forwards can’t handle the breakdown. It’s that they can’t handle in traffic.

My verdict

The money would seem to be on the Irish in today’s grand finale. They have a blend of Petri-dish precision and dogs-of-war commitment.

At Twickenham, though, that may not prove enough. England have misfired but they are not a poor side. When they go back to what they do most naturally, when they don’t over-think the game, England are one of the best in the world.

I always believed the fixtures this year would mean that Ireland won this championship. But I stand by this England team and my original assertion; England will turn up and spoil Ireland’s party. They just need to stop worrying about how they do it and play.