Test o THE f nerve for E ICEMEN
High-pressu he is the co re clash may come down to who proves lest kicker — Farrell or Halfpenny
IT will be like a high-stakes poker game. Owen Farrell and Leigh Halfpenny will find their nerves stretched to breaking point in front of 82,000 spectators at Twickenham and millions more watching at home this afternoon. The outcome of England’s Six Nations clash with Wales — and quite possibly the championship itself — may well rest on which iceman blinks first.
For Farrell, still only 21 but with 22 England caps in the cabinet already, it is a chance to avenge the 30-3 hammering he and his colleagues received at the hands of Halfpenny and Wales in Cardiff last year.
That defeat ripped both the Grand Slam and the championship out of England’s hands, but Saracens stand-off Farrell believes the 2014 version of England is a very different proposition — largely a result of their mental maturity.
‘If I’m honest, we chased the game last year in Cardiff too early,’ he said yesterday as the two sides made their final preparations for this afternoon’s crunch game.
‘That created space the Welsh exploited. But it feels like the England last year and England now are two different teams. We’ve evolved a great deal.
‘Back then we had the work ethic, the teamwork and the togetherness we have today. But what we’ve added is calmness and a belief that we will break the opposition down whatever the score may be.
‘Whereas last year panic set in when Wales began to increase their lead, we have since shown calm that has resulted in comebacks against Australia, New Zealand, France and Ireland in our last six games.
‘That proves that we no longer panic when we fall behind, even to big deficits like we faced against the All Blacks and France.
‘We lost both those games because we failed to close them out but we learnt from that and managed to react to a healthy Irish lead a fortnight ago and then hold on to our advantage. That proves we have found our nerve.
‘The key is to keep on holding it. But I think it’s clear we seem to get better the longer the game goes on these days, not worse.’
It is a view endorsed by Mike Catt, who played in four World Cups and won 75 caps for England before becoming the current team’s attacking skills coach.
‘We gave away only 10 penalties against Ireland, which is the lowest in this tournament,’ he said. ‘Our discipline and penalty count has been exceptionally good in the competition and it will need to be against Wales because we can’t afford to give Leigh Halfpenny anything — he is phenomenal.
THE Irish win was a massive step forward for us. The lessons of last year in Cardiff, then of coming back against New Zealand and France but failing to finish time off, have put us in good stead now. It showed against the Irish. We are so much better for those experiences and we are so much more mature.’
The importance of discipline and maturity will be drummed into the Welsh side by their defence coach, Shaun Edwards. The former Wigan and Great Britain rugby league star says he does not ‘buy into all this nonsense about how the Welsh hate the English’.
‘If you hate your opponents it clouds your judgment,’ he explained. ‘And then there is a very good chance you could lose the game.
‘From a technical and tactical aspect, being successful in top sport is about having a clear head. Of course, you have to play at the intensity required at Test match level but that’s all.’
Farrell is well aware of the threat posed to English dreams by Halfpenny. The two men were teammates on tour in Australia last summer with the British and Irish Lions. It was there that Farrell saw at first hand the dedication and perspiration which the 25-year-old Welshman applies to his game.
‘I already respected Leigh before the summer but, after getting to know him, I respect him even more now,’ said Farrell.
‘There’s no real secret to Leigh’s success. It’s just sheer hard work. He demands only the best and can be very harsh on himself. I consider him to be an unbelievable professional.’
So impressed was Farrell with Halfpenny’s Lions form that he tipped the Welsh full back to convert the 55-metre penalty in the dying seconds of the second Test that would have won the series for the Lions after two games.
‘For me, it would have been the greatest kick I had ever seen if Leigh had made it,’ explained Farrell. ‘It wasn’t so much the circumstances. Kickers don’t think about the importance of any one kick. It was just the distance on what was a huge pitch. I backed him to do it. When he missed he was devastated. I understand why he was, but if he’d succeeded it would have been sensational.
‘One thing’s for sure. We can’t afford to give away any penalties to Leigh from anywhere up to 50 metres out because he’ll almost certainly punish us.’
Farrell has his admirers, too, notably Neil Jenkins — the former world record points scorer who coached him with the Lions and will be assisting Halfpenny this afternoon as the Welsh kicking coach.
‘Owen’s pretty good, isn’t he?’ said Jenkins. ‘I don’t think he missed a kick in the summer with the Lions so that says it all. I was lucky enough to work with him and he is an outstanding talent.
‘He’s still just a kid but his will to win and his composure in big games really impress me. Throughout the Lions tour I could see what a worldclass player he is and he’s only going to get better. He’ll take England forward for the next few years.
‘The game is likely to come down to fine margins and it may well be decided by who kicks his pressure kicks. Discipline will be key. We need to keep Owen down to a minimum and I’m sure England will feel the same about Leigh.
‘If he’s not the best place kicker in the world then he has to be close. The highest compliment I can give him is that he reminds me of Jonny Wilkinson. They share a work ethic and the desire to be the best.’