Hunger games
Mcconnochie scare but Jones defends warm-ups
England are rolling with the punches as they contemplate shuffling their resources again for their game against Wales at a sold-out Principality Stadium today.
Eddie Jones shrugged off any concerns that players should be wrapped in cotton wool to avoid injury by saying that “a boxer has got to box and a rugby player has to play rugby”, adding that his team needed to be “absolutely brutal” to record back-to-back wins over the Grand Slam champions.
Uncapped wing Ruaridh Mcconnochie was facing a late fitness test after reporting muscle soreness following morning training. It is the second week in succession that England have had to amend their nominated team but, after a convincing victory last Sunday, Jones has no qualms about the constant tinkering as he knows that coping with such ad-hoc challenges are the essence of a successful World Cup campaign.
“People get excited about these warm-up games, saying you’ve got to win, and if you don’t it’s the end of the world,” said the head coach as England completed their training camp in Bristol and headed over the Severn Bridge to Cardiff. “For me, it’s about getting players fit and hardened, a chance to experiment with a few areas and see if they come off. You can put the players in cotton wool but then not be ready for the World Cup.
“It would be easy to have nice camps in Treviso and not play games. You get everyone to Japan fit but not ready to play rugby.
“It’s like a boxer; a boxer’s got to box, rugby player’s got to play rugby. There’s a risk involved. We just need to be absolutely brutal around the tackle and the contest on the ground.”
A Wales-england encounter can never be consigned to the status of a perfunctory friendly, a mere going through the motions ahead of far more important matters. As much as Jones, and his opposite number Warren Gatland, have their sights set firmly on impending events in Japan, there is sure to be spice and intrigue in play, all the more so given that England’s 33-19 win last weekend broke a run of 14 consecutive Welsh wins and denied them No 1 status in the world.
Both teams can achieve that rather hollow landmark this weekend, perhaps welcoming whatever accolade may come their way but fully aware that the only ranking that truly matters is the one that allows you to top the podium in Yokohama on Nov 2.
“It’s not about Wales and it’s not about Cardiff, it’s about getting ready for the World Cup,” said Jones. “You need game fitness. You need to practise what you’ve been doing in training in a game situation, where the opposition are trying to stop you doing something.
‘‘With a squad of 31, we need four games to get the necessary game time for everyone. Given our RWC schedule, we’ve got two games in four days [at the start of the tournament]. The reality is that most of the squad will probably play in those first two games and we need them to be ready. Therefore we need the four games. What I do like about the squad at the moment is their ability to adapt and get on with the job.”
Even if the short-term objective of victory over Wales is offset by the caveat that the long-term goal of the World Cup supersedes all considerations, the England players themselves are itching to show what they can offer. They may be alone among the major nations in already having the comfort of knowing they are on the plane to Japan but their inner drive to make sure that they make the starting XV or match-day 23 ensures that the crowd under the closed Principality roof will see a full-bore contest.
“We want a bring-it-on mindset, we want to really take this game to Wales, build a habit of winning,” said fly-half George Ford, fulfilling the role of captain again but all too aware that Owen Farrell is starting his build-up with a place on the bench for the first time alongside the likes of hooker Jamie George and prop Kyle Sinckler.
England had a decisive, and surprising, edge up front on Sunday
with the Wales line-out in particular wilting under pressure. There is little doubt that Wales will have been given the hurry-up by Gatland over the past few days, aided by captain Alun Wyn Jones, who is not a man to accept mid-summer, pre-season rugby as an excuse for slipshod performance.
The Ospreys lock is very mindful that their home record of 10 wins in a row is a cherished milestone and they will not want to cede on their own turf.
Wales also need to show that they too can adjust to circumstances as England have been doing albeit coping with their shift in fortunes is on an altogether more exacting scale than England’s with fly-half Gareth Anscombe joining No8 Taulupe Faletau on the list of World Cup absentees because of injury. Dan Biggar steps into the No10 starting shirt for only the second time in 2019 and will have to bring all his innate feistiness to bear if he is to quieten the clamour of scepticism that there is in Wales about his suitability for leading the team to World Cup glory. Biggar is a scrapper and his riposte will be a key source of interest on the day.
There are match-ups and headsto-head to savour across the board, particularly the tussle between the rookie opensides Lewis Ludlam and James Davies, lining up alongside brother Jonathan to become the first Welsh siblings in 13 years to take the field together.
Wales have selection issues to resolve, England have their World Cup identity to shape, ensuring that the contest will be as fierce and unforgiving as it ever was.