? Tindall and Fourie take full part in training for Wales match
? Graham Rowntree says England need 'tempo and aggression'
Positive injury news has been a scarce commodity for England lately but the worst seems to be over, at least for now. Both Mike Tindall and Hendre Fourie took a full part in training in the chilly Bagshot sunshine today and, barring any further mishaps, look set to be involved against Wales at the Millennium Stadium in the opening game of the Six Nations Championship on Friday evening.
Martin Johnson will confirm neither his team nor Tindall as his latest captain until Wednesday lunchtime but his more relaxed demeanour suggested the management are much happier with the squad's state of readiness. If Fourie is deemed to have overcome a calf problem sufficiently to fill the specialist open-side role, perming one from Joe Worsley, James Haskell, Tom Wood or Phil Dowson on the blindside is hardly a sign of visiting weakness.
Whoever starts in Cardiff will also be braced for "a storm" to quote England's scrum coach, Graham Rowntree. The straight-talking Rowntree is no weatherman but his rugby antennae can already sense a massive Welsh assault in the first quarter. "They're under pressure, I think that's been shown over the last week," said the former England prop, referring to Warren Gatland's disparaging remarks about the hooker Dylan Hartley. "This is the opening game of the Six Nations: England at home on a Friday night. The atmosphere will be electric. They'll throw everything at us with tempo, desire and aggression but we're going to give that to them as well."
Johnson also knows from experience that England can expect something other than polite applause from the home supporters. "I think it's the most hostile of the Six Nations venues for an Englishman," said Johnson, looking not the slightest perturbed. "As an Englishman in Cardiff you're not the most popular but that's great. I'd rather have that than polite indifference. They want to beat England at rugby. That's not a secret. We want to win down there. I said to the boys: 'Let's remember we're playing Friday evening and not Monday afternoon but we've got to be ready when we do play.' It's a big game."
Johnson and Rowntree also dispute Gatland's assertion that England will simply take a "route one" forward-orientated approach to the contest on Friday. While the absence of Tom Croft has left England short of a key lineout operator, Johnson also needs mobile forwards to counter Wales's threat in wider channels. "Balance in the back row is important," said Johnson. "We need to be able to play what's in front of us. In terms of scrums, you don't know how many you're going to get. You can't put all your eggs in that basket."
It is Rowntree's fervent hope, nevertheless, that Six Nations referees will follow the International Rugby Board's instructions and clamp down on sides who deliberately collapse the set scrums. "I hope there is less tolerance," said Rowntree. "I'm sick of seeing collapsed scrums. I want our lads to stay up and push. It's bloody simple." With Gethin Jenkins and Adam Jones both missing from the Welsh front row, the message to Ireland's Alain Rolland is clear enough: if a scrum goes down, it is not England's fault.
Ultimately, though, England also have to keep their discipline. In the autumn internationals they gave away seven scrum penalties, the majority for early engagement. Cut those out and Wales's job becomes significantly harder, regardless of the threat posed by the home backs. Tom Palmer, the England lock, reckons his side are more equipped to score their first win in Cardiff since 2003 than they have been in recent times. "We're a much better team now than we were two or four years ago. We've got a better mix and we've got a game plan which suits the players we've got."
In Chris Ashton, now fully recovered from a thigh strain, they also have a finisher intent on proving Shane Williams is not the only sharpshooter in town. "I'll be absolutely honoured to play against him but I also need to get the better of him," said Ashton, whose spectacular score against Australia in November has just won him the International Rugby Players' Association try of the year award. "Shane plays the game the way I like to play it and roams all over the pitch. Hopefully I can stop him from doing that."
Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2011/jan/31/martin-johnson-england-wales-six-nations
The US embassy cables Financial sector Cultural trips Sam Allardyce Conservatives Employment law
No comments:
Post a Comment