England’s return to scene of Bok beating
WhEN England go back to Ellis Park on Saturday only four of their players will have first-hand experience of the ordeal that awaits, after being swamped by a ‘green wave’ there six years ago.
The high-altitude stronghold of Springbok rugby will serve as a hostile backdrop to the series opener — and the last time the national team were there, they were subjected to a primal onslaught. Back in 2012, under Stuart Lancaster, England were brutally battered at the Johannesburg venue where Eddie Jones’s side play this weekend.
Joe Marler, Ben Youngs, Chris Robshaw and Owen Farrell, a sub that day, are the survivors of a gruelling episode and Lancaster (right) recalls it ‘vividly’.
The man now winning titles with Leinster cast his mind back to his first tour as England head coach, saying: ‘We picked such a young and inexperienced team and that South African team was unbelievably strong.
‘We’d gone reasonably well in the first Test in Durban. Then we got to Ellis Park. Faz (Andy Farrell) wasn’t on that tour so I was effectively looking after defence and after about 20 minutes this wave of green shirts was crashing over us. You’re thinking “Oh my God, this could be 40, 50”.’ England were blown away, 19 points adrift after 19 minutes. They fought back to within a score, before the hosts claimed a late try to win 36-27 and take the series. Lancaster said: ‘That 20-minute period at Ellis Park was all about relentless power in a very intimidating stadium. I was very proud of the boys. It was a tremendous show of resilience. I remember Geoff Parling at half-time really getting stuck into the boys. We came out in the second half and narrowed the gap. Then we drew the third Test.’ Jones’s England class of 2018 will need to show similar resistance in four days. Youngs said: ‘They are rugby mad and they have some fantastic stadiums. I remember we narrowly lost the first Test in Durban then went to Jo’burg. I just remember it being really tough at altitude. ‘They came out of the blocks really hard and we were under the sticks, but we got our composure back. ‘Ellis Park is a great stadium. It is intimidating, but no more so than Cardiff, say. The altitude is what you want to make of it — if you get it in your head that it’ll make a massive difference then your body will react to what your head is telling you. You have so many sports scientists that they do everything to make sure it has a smaller effect than it used to. hopefully my kicks go miles up! ‘I can see Elliot Daly hitting a 70-metre penalty in the thin air.’