Exceptional George Ford Pivotal to Defeating the Kiwis
The fly-half position went to Ford to open versus the All Blacks over the Smith alternatives.
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In November 2024, England fly-half George Ford cut a dejected figure during the match.
Ford had been summoned from the bench to help England complete a famous win facing the Kiwis, however was unable to score a late penalty along with a drop-kick as his side lost by two points.
In the wake of those pivotal failures, the player was required to strive to secure another chance to achieve success for the national side.
His playing time was limited to 25 minutes during this year's Six Nations however a series of impressive performances, particularly on the warm-weather tour against Argentina and the USA as Fin Smith and Marcus Smith were absent for British and Irish Lions duty, reestablished him strongly in the starting mix.
The 32-year-old did more than justify Steve Borthwick's faith through his selection against the All Blacks, plus the club standout achieved a best-player showing to assist the home team to a breakthrough triumph against the All Blacks in their own stadium ending a drought dating to 2012.
The pivotal moment occurred as Ford converted consecutive drop-kicks right before half-time.
It helped England bounce back from being down 12-0 to reduce the margin to 12-11 by halftime, before Borthwick's star-studded bench again delivered in the second half to support England to a convincing 33-19 victory.
"You have to give credit to the senior players in our team, particularly Ford," the coach stated. "During that phase as he scored those drop-kicks, he directed play absolutely brilliantly.
"Twelve months ago I thought George entered and performed very effectively [versus the All Blacks].
"A kick hit the post and he had a difficult drop-goal, yet he performed excellently.
"He's an exceptional captain, a brilliant player and an even finer individual. We are privileged to have him on our team."
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Drop-goals 'part of the strategy'
Back in 2024, Ford's misses from the tee were expensive as the team was defeated by the All Blacks - but it was an alternate outcome during the match.
The Kiwis began rapidly during the match, building a substantial early margin with tries by Fainga'anuku and Taylor.
Subsequent to Ollie Lawrence's impressive score, Ford's consecutive drop-kicks meant the hosts bounced into the halftime break with psychological advantage.
"The difficult aspect in those moments is, when the scoreboard says a twelve-point deficit, we must maintain to our strategy and what we believe the optimal approach to perform is," Ford explained.
"We got ourselves back into contention and we recognized if we started the latter half effectively, as reserves joined, we found ourselves in a favorable situation.
"Although facing a quarter-hour remaining, we ended up defending our goal line after a penalty, so we had challenges during that phase also.
"I think that's what elite competition requires - who manages best in those circumstances most effectively."
The two attempts happened within close succession as Ford who executed three drop-kicks during a victory facing the Argentine team at the 2023 Rugby World Cup, demonstrated his full 104-cap experience.
Ford successfully executed two drop-goals with Sale in a Prem game played in challenging weather against Bath - this demonstrates a talent he is well-practised in.
"It [the drop-goals] are consistently planned," Ford stated further.
"Borthwick represents an incredible coach since he continually advising me, and rightly so since three points prove important throughout the match of play."
Ford directed his side brilliantly around the field the complete contest, making smart decisions - both to compete and locating gaps against the defensive line.
His trademark 'spiral bomb' also bamboozled the opposing fullback, who failed to regather.
After beginning England's win against Australia in early November, Ford passed on the number 10 jersey to his replacement against Fiji the following week.
Yet the most significant examination on paper this autumn came against the multiple World Cup winners, so Ford returned to his starting role.
England, now on a run of 10 straight wins, face Argentina this month creating intrigue to determine if the manager opts with the alternative or maintains Ford.
Whatever choice occurs, Ford demonstrated two years away prior to global competition that ample opportunity of play remaining within him.
Associated subjects
- England Rugby Union
- Rugby Union
