FORD’S FIGHT FOR No 10
Ireland clash is crucial as rejuvenated Farrell ramps up the pressure
STUART Lancaster last night put the England No 10 shirt up for grabs again by revealing that George Ford is coming under increasing pressure from a resurgent Owen Farrell.
Bath fly-half Ford has retained the playmaker’s role for Saturday’s final pre-World Cup game against Ireland at Twickenham, but the 22-year-old has his good friend breathing down his neck after an initially faltering performance against France in Paris 11 days ago.
Farrell is desperate to reclaim his lost status as Lancaster’s firstchoice stand-off and the head coach claimed that the deposed Lion has been rising to the challenge.
‘It’s tight,’ said Lancaster. ‘George is in position at the moment but Owen has been training exceptionally well. He is back to his very best for me. His defence, his game management and his attacking game have been the best I’ve seen them. He is pushing hard. That’s a good position to be in when we also have George who is such a good player. They are such good mates. They push, help and support each other. It is positive competition.’
Just a few short weeks ago, Lancaster emphasised that Ford was top of the pecking order in that pivotal position and claimed Farrell and Danny Cipriani, who was still in the squad at the time, had to raise their standards to compete.
Now it appears that Farrell has done just that but the man in charge is adamant that Ford will respond to the threat. ‘I don’t need to tell George because he trains against Owen day in day out,’ said Lancaster.
‘We have a lot of faith in George because he has been exceptional, but this is another big game for him because Ireland have a very good kicking game and our kicking game needs to be spot on. What disappointed George in Paris was the kick-off — he is such a perfectionist — and he didn’t find touch.
‘We remember the two errors he made but if you go back to the last 20 minutes of the game, a lot has been made about people coming off the bench but it was his vision to throw the pass that ended up in the try that Danny Cipriani scored. All our creative attack came off the back of him. I think he did pretty well in the end but he was annoyed.’
Ford and Farrell continually emphasise mutual support and respect for each other, and put the collective good of the team above personal ambition. But Ford, who was such an outstanding attacking performer during the Six Nations, gave an insight yesterday into his determination to keep hold of the No 10 shirt.
‘Everyone wants to be starting,’ he said. ‘We are so competitive and we both want to start. We both want to be as good a player as we can be. If it’s 15 v 15 in training, we both want our teams to win and we are massively competitive about that. But after the session we’ll chat about it, review it and see how the team can get better.’
Ford echoed Lancaster’s view about the fine balance between himself and the fly-half rival he has known since childhood, adding: ‘It’s tight. Owen is constantly trying to be a better player. He’s a great trainer and leader in the team. He plays consistently well and I see that as a positive. I have to raise my game. That’s a great position to be in. You always want someone pushing you.’
Lancaster yesterday confirmed a starting line-up featuring five changes to the XV who began the 25-20 defeat in Paris.
Geoff Parling and Tom Wood are back in to bolster the stuttering lineout, Ben Morgan will have the chance for more precious gametime at No 8, Brad Barritt will form what is likely to be the preferred midfield axis with Jonathan Joseph and Anthony Watson returns in place of Jack Nowell on the wing.
Following cross-border barbs from his Wales counterpart Warren Gatland about English confusion relating to selection and tactics, Lancaster claimed he and his squad would not be sidetracked by such attempts to get under their skin.
‘Different international coaches have different ways of preparing their team and preparing to play,’ he said, carefully.
‘My personal way is to just focus on us. We only concentrate on what we can control. We have had situations like this in the past and we’ve very much stuck to our principles and stuck to our guns. It’s done well for us.’