Reddin could get England pack back to 2003 standard

THE decision by Eddie Jones to court Dave Reddin, England’s 2003 World Cup-winning conditioning guru, shows just how difficult it is for Northern Hemisphere players to close the fitness gap on the All Blacks.

Reddin, who Sir Clive Woodward considered to be invaluable in his push to turn England into world champions, is currently the Football Association’s head of team strategy and performance, and Jones is eager to tap into his expertise again.

The England coach said that although England had closed the fitness gap on New Zealand so that there is no longer a 20 per cent difference, there is still a sizeable gulf. He wants it closed, and admission that his current staff is seeking assistance from the world’s best conditioning coaches – with Reddin and the University of Oregon’s Jimmy Radcliffe top of the list – reflects how hard it is to nail the last few percentages.

Jones described Reddin as, “a brilliant operator”, and added: “We’re just trying to find people that are smarter than us – and we’re not afraid to go outside and get smarter people to come in and tell us we’re dumb.”

Jones said of the England squad’s current shortfall is mainly in the forwards: “The biggest gap we have got is the front five, and the outside three (backrow) in terms of repeat speed. In the tight five the game’s going very much towards repeat intensity – repeat accelerations, repeat collisions – and it’s very much about how quickly you get back to your feet and get involved.”

It sounds as if the big men in the England pack are going to have to go through the pain barrier, and beyond to reach a peak – which is exactly what Reddin did with Martin Johnson, Lawrence Dallaglio and company in 2003. I have never seen a fitter-looking England pack.