Strength in depth will strike fear into England’s rivals
If the rest of the Northern Hemisphere didn’t know it yet, the challenge of preventing England winning a second Six Nations Grand Slam in a row is a daunting one. As Eddie Jones discussed the many returning faces that feature in his 34-man squad named on Friday, what struck home is that his side now boast an extraordinary strength in depth that none of the other sides they will face over the next two sides can rival.
This is an England side that begins the campaign against France in two weeks’ time with 14 consecutive wins under their belt and have remained undefeated since Jones replaced Stuart Lancaster after the 2015 Rugby World Cup.
Yet they managed to maintain that run last autumn, with impressive wins over South Africa, Fiji, Argentina and Australia, without a host of first team regulars that return to the fold. Much was made of Jones’s new call-ups for the 2017 instalment of the Six Nations, but what will matter most is having the likes of Maro Itoje, James Haskell, Anthony Watson and Jack Nowell back in the fold.
Haskell was England’s standout performer last summer as England recorded their first ever series whitewash in Australia, all at the ripe old age of 31 years old. A veteran of 70 caps makes him the second most experienced player in Jones’s squad behind captain Dylan Hartley, and he was in the form of his life before a toe injury required surgery and ruled him out for more than six months.
Watson and Nowell may not be as experienced as the Wasps flanker, the pair winning 24 and 18 caps respectively, but they do boast 20 tries between them and when given no more than a yard of space can inflict devastating consequences onto opponents. The expectation is that England will travel to Dublin on the final weekend of the championship for a Grand Slam decider, providing they deal with Wales in Cardiff and France, Scotland and Italy at home. But as Jones stressed on Friday, that’s the type of thinking that breeds complacency, and would likely result in an opening weekend defeat by the French.
But what will fall in their favour is that when the other teams take a glimpse at England’s squad list, it’s rather hard to find a chink in the armour. England possess one of the strongest second-rows in world rugby, and that stretches beyond George Kruis and Itoje given that Joe Launchbury and Courtney Lawes lie in wait sniffing any chance that comes their way.
Jones has brought balance to the back-row, deploying Haskell and Tom Wood – two flankers utilised on
the blindside by the previous coaching regime – as opensides, while the versatile Jack Clifford will battle Nathan Huighes for the No 8 spot in Billy Vunipola’s absence – a blow not so devastating since Hughes qualified to play for England. Ben Youngs is probably a yard short of rivalling Conor Murray and Aaron Smith for the claim to being the world’s best No 9, but with the electric Danny Care lying in wait, while George Ford and Owen Farrell welcome Saracens’ utility back Alex Lozowski into the mix that strengthens the options at 10 and confirms Danny Cipriani won’t be wearing the white of England again while Jones is in charge unless the Wasps stand-off can perform miracles.
The tried and tested centre partnership of Farrell and Jonathan Joseph is likely to be retained, but Elliot Daly returns with a point to prove after his red card against the Pumas last November, with Ben Te’o and the talented Henry Slade thrown in for good measure. As mentioned, Watson and Nowell return, lethal finishers in their own right, but they don’t come much more lethal than Jonny May and the pace merchant stands a chance of starting England’s opening encounter if either Watson or Nowell is off the boil. With Mike Brown marshalling the back line from full-back, it’s hard to pinpoint where it could all go wrong, especially with Daly as cover and the form Premiership player for God knows how long in Alex Goode not even making the squad.
But if there is to be one area for concern, it’s up front, and that’s where the rest of the pack – particularly Ireland – will try to take on the English. Hartley is severely undercooked after picking up a six-week ban for a swinging arm on Leinster’s Sean O’Brien last November, and Dan Cole isn’t the world-beater that he once was. Yet it’s the loosehead that Samson Lee, Tadhg Furlong and the other tightheads across the Northern Hemisphere will be targeting.
Mako Vunipola is absent with injury for the duration of the tournament, while his proven understudy, Joe Marler, enters the championship with a fractured leg suffered just two weeks’ ago – not what you would call the ideal preparation. Yet while this is the obvious area to target, it could prove a blessing in disguise.
Back in from the cold comes Leicester Tigers prop Ellis Genge, who must have feared the worst after he was dropped from the Elite Player Squad at the turn of the year with just a solitary cap to his name. But the Bristolian has flourished at Welford Road this season, and if Jones chooses to throw him in at the deep-end against France, he might just reap the rewards.
Genge can offer Jones the strength in depth across the board that he has been craving over his 14 months in charge so far, and if the front-row rookie delivers, it’s looking rather ominous for the rest of the Six Nations hopefuls.
Saracens boss Mark McCall has described European Champions Cup opponents Toulon as "a dangerous animal" ahead of Saturday's clash at Allianz Park.
McCall's men have already secured a quarter-final place, but victory over the three-time European champions would secure an all-important home draw.
Holders Saracens beat Toulon on the Cote d'Azur three months ago, but McCall knows the degree of difficulty facing his players is considerable in their quest for a repeat performance.
A Toulon win would also take them through - but defeat could spell pool stage elimination.
"It is a massive match," McCall said.
"It's good that we have qualified, but we want to secure a home quarter-final if possible. They (Toulon) have got all their squad back together now.
"Matt Giteau came back last weekend and looked good for the 30 minutes he played, (Josua) Tuisova was devastating for the 20 minutes he was on the pitch, Juan Smith was back for them, so they will come to us thinking they will have a big chance because we are missing a few bodies. "I know that every player they have is unbelievably competitive, and when they've been asked to step up down the years - when they really need it - they are very tough to play against.
"When they are motivated they really are a dangerous animal.
"It's a huge game at home, and a win gets us what we want. We've got to be very smart with how we play the game."
Former Bath boss Mike Ford and ex-Leicester rugby director Richard Cockerill are now key figures in the Toulon coaching team, and McCall added: "You can see (Toulon) are a lot more organised than they were, right across the team.
"In the set-piece, in the way they play, and the detail is a lot better than it was a couple of months ago. It's no surprise, as they are good coaches."
Wasps will join Saracens in the knockout phase if, as expected, they beat tournament minnows Zebre on Sunday, but that is likely to be it from an English perspective in terms of quarter-final representation.
England flanker James Haskell will make his first Wasps start of the season after suffering a head knock during a 35-second comeback appearance off the bench following seven months out against Leicester 12 days ago. Danny Cipriani, Kurtley Beale and Tommy Taylor also feature.
"Teams like Zebre will always want to leave a mark in any competition, and if you look through their home games in the PRO12 this season they have nearly caused a few upsets so we will pay them the respect they deserve," Wasps rugby director Dai Young said.
"It is important that we are in the right place, mentally, and our accuracy is good. It's also important that we start strongly and hit the ground running."
Four of the quarter-final places are already filled by Saracens, Munster, Leinster and Clermont Auvergne, and of the other English challengers, potentially only Exeter have a chance of progressing.
The Chiefs, though, realistically need a bonus-point win against Clermont at Stade Marcel-Michelin and must then rely on results elsewhere if they are to hold any hope of matching last season's dramatic finalday qualification. On that occasion, they progressed after claiming a five-point maximum at the Ospreys' expense and Bordeaux-Begles beat Clermont.
"It's a scenario that is not too different to that of last season," Exeter head coach Rob Baxter said.
"Yes, we have to do well in the game, we have to have results go our way, but history shows that strange things can happen.
"Getting tied up with points and where we will come will probably only confuse us and cloud exactly how we want to play and what we want to get right. We certainly won't get carried away too much with points and what it will take to qualify.
"The reality is that it is about turning up like we did last weekend against Ulster and putting in levels of performance that deserve to win the game."
Elsewhere on Saturday, Glasgow will book a first-ever Champions Cup quarter-final place if they beat Leicester at Welford Road, while Munster can prepare for a home tie later this season with a home win over Racing 92.
PA