Over the last few weeks, English rugby supporters have been getting twitchy at comments made in the southern hemisphere. Former All Blacks head coach Graham Henry claimed that England were ‘world champions of wasting talent due to ’playing a games based on fear’ and Wayne Smith has since listed 19 Kiwi Fly halves that he believes could challenge for an England spot. The remarks could be perceived as arrogant and inflammatory. It certainly as antagonised a few! Yesterday I came across an article named ‘Northern Hemisphere getting bashed again’.
It is an intelligently written article by George Chuter (a former England International) which responded to those claims made by the former NZ coaches. It has led me to believe that while I don’t entirely concur that England are World Champions at wasting talent, England could definitely lay a claim to being world champions at making excuses! Some may disagree but here are my reasons to back up the claim.
England Play in horrible weather, you can’t expect us to catch AND pass a ball!
George Chuter - ‘I would be interested to see how many of Wayne Smith’s 19 fly-halves would look as good in the cold and wet mud of the English winter while they scrap for precious league points, as they do on a fast, dry hard field in the more temperate Southern Hemisphere season.’
Well there’s no doubt that it’s easier to play running rugby in dry weather than wet…but New Zealand has a very similar climate to the UK. Dunedin on the south island in fact Gaelic for Edinburgh! Anyone who frequently watches NZ rugby also knows that it can be horrifically wet during some games. The difference is in the mindset. Kiwi players want to play a running game and so do their coaches. Hence they do. Wales and Ireland both have similar weather to England and yet play a far more expansive game. Why is that?
In England we have to worry about relegation – our livelihoods are on the line!
George Chuter - ‘Over here, people’s jobs and livelihoods are on the line. Relegation means a huge drop in revenue for clubs. The knock-on effect means that players suffer pay cuts or contract termination, back room staff lose their jobs and the club takes a huge financial hit that many have struggled to come back from. In this environment, there is very little room for experimentation. This may cause teams to play in fear, but it also makes for a very competitive league system.’
This is true. Relegation is a huge worry. The point Henry made though was that this threat makes English players play some rather dire and uninspiring rugby at times. Chuter has practically conceded that is true with his defence. Yes it is tough rugby and competitive, but rugby at the top level is tough anyways. At the very top level of international rugby, the game is won in the top 2 inches in addition to what your body is able to do physically on the field. If players in the Aviva Premiership are only exposed to rugby which is lacking in creativity, how does this help them slot seamlessly into International Rugby? How can we expect them to know how to cope with creativity shown by Carter, Cooper et all?
Also, some may be aware that there actually is a threat of relegation for the bottom placed South African franchise this year. They are mostly likely to be replaced by the Southern Kings. Why then despite this pressure have 3 of their 5 franchises got relative newbies steering the ship for their teams? Johann Goosen is only 19 at the Cheetahs, while Elton Jantjes (Lions) and Pat Lambie (Sharks) are both in their early 20’s. The answer is they place more trust in their younger players. England could learn from that. However much one can argue that a George Ford could learn under the tutelage of Flood for example at Leicester, one could also argue that actually they tend to flourish when they are given the chance to learn on their own. After all, Flood himself didn’t really stand a chance until he left the shadow of Wilkinson at Newcastle. All of these points I’m sure could be debated passionately by the most ardent fans. Of that I am sure, but it is food for thought at least!
Over the last few weeks, English rugby supporters have been getting twitchy at comments made in the southern hemisphere. Former All Blacks head coach Graham Henry claimed that England were ‘world champions of wasting talent due to ’playing a games based on fear’ and Wayne Smith has since listed 19 Kiwi Fly halves that he believes could challenge for an England spot. The remarks could be perceived as arrogant and inflammatory. It certainly as antagonised a few! Yesterday I came across an article named ‘Northern Hemisphere getting bashed again’.
It is an intelligently written article by George Chuter (a former England International) which responded to those claims made by the former NZ coaches. It has led me to believe that while I don’t entirely concur that England are World Champions at wasting talent, England could definitely lay a claim to being world champions at making excuses! Some may disagree but here are my reasons to back up the claim.
England Play in horrible weather, you can’t expect us to catch AND pass a ball!
George Chuter - ‘I would be interested to see how many of Wayne Smith’s 19 fly-halves would look as good in the cold and wet mud of the English winter while they scrap for precious league points, as they do on a fast, dry hard field in the more temperate Southern Hemisphere season.’
Well there’s no doubt that it’s easier to play running rugby in dry weather than wet…but New Zealand has a very similar climate to the UK. Dunedin on the south island in fact Gaelic for Edinburgh! Anyone who frequently watches NZ rugby also knows that it can be horrifically wet during some games. The difference is in the mindset. Kiwi players want to play a running game and so do their coaches. Hence they do. Wales and Ireland both have similar weather to England and yet play a far more expansive game. Why is that?
In England we have to worry about relegation – our livelihoods are on the line!
George Chuter - ‘Over here, people’s jobs and livelihoods are on the line. Relegation means a huge drop in revenue for clubs. The knock-on effect means that players suffer pay cuts or contract termination, back room staff lose their jobs and the club takes a huge financial hit that many have struggled to come back from. In this environment, there is very little room for experimentation. This may cause teams to play in fear, but it also makes for a very competitive league system.’
This is true. Relegation is a huge worry. The point Henry made though was that this threat makes English players play some rather dire and uninspiring rugby at times. Chuter has practically conceded that is true with his defence. Yes it is tough rugby and competitive, but rugby at the top level is tough anyways. At the very top level of international rugby, the game is won in the top 2 inches in addition to what your body is able to do physically on the field. If players in the Aviva Premiership are only exposed to rugby which is lacking in creativity, how does this help them slot seamlessly into International Rugby? How can we expect them to know how to cope with creativity shown by Carter, Cooper et all?
Also, some may be aware that there actually is a threat of relegation for the bottom placed South African franchise this year. They are mostly likely to be replaced by the Southern Kings. Why then despite this pressure have 3 of their 5 franchises got relative newbies steering the ship for their teams? Johann Goosen is only 19 at the Cheetahs, while Elton Jantjes (Lions) and Pat Lambie (Sharks) are both in their early 20’s. The answer is they place more trust in their younger players. England could learn from that. However much one can argue that a George Ford could learn under the tutelage of Flood for example at Leicester, one could also argue that actually they tend to flourish when they are given the chance to learn on their own. After all, Flood himself didn’t really stand a chance until he left the shadow of Wilkinson at Newcastle. All of these points I’m sure could be debated passionately by the most ardent fans. Of that I am sure, but it is food for thought at least!
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