Jody’s blog Part 2
England’s worst showing since 1987
Welcome to Jody’s blog part 2. Well what a turn up for the books that was and everyone’s predictions completely blown out of the water. There is no point in hiding away from the fact England were poor. They started out as joint tournament favourites following a good World Cup but finished 5th. But England have been here before and will certainly bounce back over the next 12 months. And almost certainly come back strongly for the 2022 6 nations.
More on England later but for now lets talk about the other tournament highlights:
The home nations
“The luck of the Welsh”. Well the Wales team certainly got some luck especially when it came to the oppo receiving cards. Both Scotland and Ireland players issued red cards in their respective fixtures with the Welsh. The Welsh would certainly claim they would have won those fixtures anyway but I’m less than convinced. I think we’ll get a better understanding of where Pivac’s men are when they take on Southern Hemisphere teams in the Autumn. Ranked 9th in the world coming into the tournament.
The Scots with something to prove and probably the best creative fly half in the world in Finn Russell were the most inconsistent team in the competition. One might say they had their best opportunity for a while at getting a Grand Slam. But those hopes faded as they lost narrowly to Wales and Ireland in 2 games that could easily have gone the other way. They went to France and beat most people’s pre tournament favourites by 4 whole points. If I’d been writing their end of term report card I would certainly have said 5% more attention to detail and they would have had that Grand Slam.
The Irish could also make a claim for the Could’ve/Should’ve team of the tournament. With 2 narrow losses to France and Wales respectively they saw their opportunity disappear. They like England need to find some long term options in some key positions. With Jonny Sexton well past his prime they really need to find their next, first name on the teamsheet Playmaker General. He still has the ability to change a game but unlikely to play a part in the next World Cup.
The Europeans
France started out as pre tournament favourites. With the inclusion of the defensive genius Shaun Edwards in the coaching setup a lot of people must have had a bet on them. From the start their defensive setup and discipline looked much improved but they still have some way to go with their game management losing narrowly to England after leading leading at half time. Their talent pool is staggering and with the improvements in their club games they are going to be a force to be reckoned with in their own World Cup in 2023.
Not much to be said about Italy. Same old, same old. Some flashes of brilliance but just not the structure or talent pool to make a significant impact. A real shame!
Jody’s blog part 2 follow Rugby Union Weekly Podcast https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p0974hdk
The Upshot – Jody Wheelhouse’s round up
My conclusion is that anyone can beat anyone especially at home, cards are much more influential on internationals and historical performance is no guarantee of form now (England). England just didn’t show up at the party, some odd selections by the angry Aussie, combined with players playing out of position and some tired looking senior players led to poor performances. For me the selections killed us and he should have been giving the youngsters a go especially in key positions 8,9 and 10.
Jody’s blog part 2 written by: Jody Wheelhouse