England reveal World Cup game plan by selecting Sam Burgess
Friday 28 August 2015 15:52, UK
I really do have my reservations about Sam Burgess and feel that by selecting him, Stuart Lancaster basically wants his No 12 playing a predominately defensive role.
Mike Catt has come out and said that to win a World Cup you have to be defensively strong – that is fine but you also need some sort of attacking midfield too. Neither Brad Barritt nor Burgess possess the best distribution or kicking game. England are now really limited in terms of what kind of game they will play at 12.
Quite frankly if England's forwards play as badly as they did in Paris then it won't matter if they have got a kicking game or not. However, I really think that was a one off and Graham Rowntree will get his forwards back to what they do well and that is producing a platform.
But in international rugby, in both defence and attack, there will be a time when you have to kick. A prime example is in the quarter-finals in 2003 where England came under huge pressure from Wales. Catt came on at half-time and his kicking game played a major role in England's win.
I believe that the modern day No 12 has to have a skill set – has Burgess got that? We don't know really but I do not believe his distribution or his kicking is good enough to survive at this level.
England still have so much potential out wide but my big concern is that they will not see the ball as they have no one in the midfield to create the space and get it out to them. Will Anthony Watson and Jonny May be given the chance to show their skills?
Slammin' Sam is going to have to start doing some slamming because that is why he is there. I wish him all the best but he is going to have to really step up and has not got much time to reach his full potential.
Tactics
I would not be surprised if Lancaster drops George Ford and puts Owen Farrell back in as his first choice No 10. They are obviously not going down the flair route but rather the defensive route and I would suggest that their game plan will be very physical and very tight in that midfield area at the expense of a distributor.
I also would not be surprised if Richard Wigglesworth starts against Fiji because of his box kicking. His box kicking and passing is probably better than the others, but his ability to spot a gap and attack by using his pace is not as good as either Ben Youngs nor Danny Care.
But England don't want that at this early stage, they seem to want pragmatism, it will be all about territory for them. So Wigglesworth will box kick, Farrell will pass and tackle and Burgess will take it up the middle.
I would like to see a bit more attack from England because you know that is what Australia, South Africa and New Zealand will bring to the party. They have an attacking prowess at 10 and 12 and at 13 – not just at 11, 14 and 15 which is all England seem to have.
The Slade factor
I was speaking to Rob Baxter about Henry Slade over a few beers and he said that Slade just does not get phased. He will play at 12 or 13 – he actually wants to play at No 10 – but he will fit into any pattern and perform. He is not as big as Burgess, but he will tackle well above his weight, he has a great step, great hands and plenty of pace. Plus he has a really good kicking game.
I would love England to start with Ford at No 10 and Slade at 12 because that would give them a real attacking edge – they won't though because they have shown their hand and will need to stick to it.
We are not privy to everything that goes on in the camp and we don't get to see what the coaches see day in and day out – all we can do is react to what we see on game day and it is the coaches who have to make the big decisions. They have made some big calls, Nick Easter's omission for an out-of-form Ben Morgan is another selection that has had me scratching my head, but the England coaches do have a vision and no matter if I agree or disagree with their selection, I wish them all the best and will be fully behind them come the World Cup.
