James Gordon
Like the victory of England over Italy in the Six Nations race, I would be surprised if it felt like a race.
They won the title after the race France/Ireland last Saturday and I hope they had some beers to celebrate.
They will remember this in their careers and will be happy to have been among the championship winners.
But after the tournament was suspended in March due to the coronavirus pandemic, the momentum of the tournament was lost.
But when I looked at the social networks and the news I had, everyone told me I would have all the rugby on Saturday.
In the last match between France and Ireland there was a lot at stake and none of them could take the title away from England. I think it worked very well.
France was too good for Ireland, but there were moments before the break when people thought they just needed a bill from the Irish to put pressure on the hosts.
Cancellation of barbarians will have major consequences
The match against Italy was not an easy task for England. They didn’t play any game for seven months because their warm-up match with the barbarians was cancelled after some Baa Baasa players broke the rules of the Coronavirus.
I think it’ll have a big effect. Although England made a good start, Italy was in turmoil for the first ten minutes.
England couldn’t change its tactics. It was pretty clear they would hit the sheet of the ball and then try to counter it.
The first ten minutes it worked, but then Italy recovered and England had to play in a different style.
They had to play more phase rugby, and only after they reached the dressing rooms at halftime and the coaches told them to come out and take Italy off the field in the second half.
It would be nice to change tactics in 20 minutes. It’s a problem with the English team – to change the tactics halfway through the half, not to wait for the break, but the first game is hard to keep.
We know that the first round of the Six Nations is hanging by a thread, and even though it was the last game, it was a one-time thing, so you’re going to get a little rusty again.
In fact, only the first half of the match against France was the poorest part of the tournament in England.
They have this game on the 24th and 17th. February – her only defeat, but that was so long ago that I think England will have nothing if they do not finish the Grand Slam.
There are many positive moments of the tournament. Big helmets are really hard to get through, it’s not something that happens automatically every year.
The result will be the captain of England in the very near future.
Lock Maro Itoje will undoubtedly be the future captain of England, and I would say in the very near future.
Either he said goodbye to Captain Owen Farrell, or someone told him to get more involved.
His commitment and aggressiveness served as a catalyst for England to play better in the second half.
On the contrary, Farrell can exert some pressure. I don’t think he had the best game, because he played when he was 10 years old and took over as captain. For England, Farrell seems to feel much more comfortable at the age of 12.
I’d like to see Itoje in the captain’s crew. I was under the impression that the more responsibility you give him, the better he’ll have it.
Six countries by 2020: Owen Farrell says that England is just beginning…
Yangs is the perfect number nine in England.
On Friday, I exchanged a few messages with Ben Yangs for his 100th birthday.
Playing 100 games is something I haven’t been able to do, and Jason Leonard is the only other rugby player who’s done it in an English shirt.
I think it really showed Ben how to play. He scored two big attempts and didn’t play that far apart for a long time.
His management and individual work have been excellent. He is probably watching this match and thinks he has to prepare for the matches in the coming years, just as he did for this Italian match.
He looked sharp, super prepared, and who said he couldn’t last another three years until the next world championship?
It will be difficult, and not just physically. If you look at who’s coming, Dan Robson and Alex Mitchell are part of the English team.
I’m sure Ben Spencer will respond if he’s not on the team, and you’ve got Willie Heinz, who obviously likes to be on the team, and Eddie Jones.
The Yangs have a lot of competition, so the question is whether he can stay in shape.
But he’s the perfect number nine for England – he builds on their strengths.
Matt Dawson spoke to Becky Grey’s athlete.
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