Paul Gustard wants England duo George Ford and Owen Farrell to step up
Saturday 30 January 2016 13:26, UK
Paul Gustard believes the time has come for George Ford and Owen Farrell to establish themselves as England's twin playmakers.
Ford and Farrell are expected to start the Six Nations opener against Scotland on February 6 at Murrayfield at fly-half and inside centre respectively, reforming an age-grade partnership seen only twice at Test level.
Farrell has benefited from the absence of the injured Manu Tuilagi and Henry Slade, who are believed to have been head coach Eddie Jones' preferred options at number 12.
Tuilagi is set to miss Leicester Tigers next two matches because of a hamstring problem, potentially scuppering hopes of fielding him in the latter stages of the Six Nations, while Slade has been ruled out of the entire championship with a broken leg.
The absentees have given Ford and Farrell the opportunity to demonstrate they are the solution to England's midfield conundrum and defence coach Gustard hopes they can take their chance.
"We saw glimpses of their potential against Uruguay in the World Cup and people are licking their lips about the potential of having two ball players at 10 and 12," Gustard said.
"They played together as kids, but now they play for different clubs and come into camp for a short period of time so it's up to them to integrate as well as they can. They are good friends and know each other well.
"Their time is now because they are both international rugby players and they are both very good.
"If we can get them both on the pitch - if that was the selection - and they perform then it could be that their time is now."
Ollie Devoto, who will leave Bath at the end of the season for Exeter due to a lack of game time, will offer midfield cover from the bench at Murrayfield.
Despite enduring a difficult domestic campaign, Devoto has received high praise from Gustard.
"Some of Ollie's performances last season were stellar. Really good," Gustard added.
"He has had mixed matches this year, so his selection might be a surprise for people from the outside looking in. But we're not Bath head coaches.
"He's been one of the guys I have been most impressed with this week. He's better than I thought, he's a big kid and has a deftness of touch and a strong kicking game with another left-footed option. He's really impressed me."
Gustard revealed former Australia openside and Test centurion George Smith made his presence felt during a defensive skills breakdown session the Wasps forward conducted at the squad's Surrey training base on Wednesday.
"The way he explained it was refreshing. He hadn't been coached and wasn't thinking like an Anglo-Saxon, where you try to build a process around the tackle," Gustard said.
"The way his body moved, speaking to Chris Robshaw and James Haskell, who have 50 caps, left some of the guys a little bit embarrassed in terms of how poor their body moved compared to his."
