Wednesday, March 27

Six Nations Countdown: Six England Team Dilemmas for Eddie Jones | six nations


England names their team for the Six Nations championship on Tuesday. With the 2023 Rugby World Cup just around the corner, here are six key questions for Eddie Jones to answer.

1) Should you rush back to Owen Farrell?

Sports life can be extraordinarily tough. A touch of Covid, the rise of Marcus Smith, and most recently ankle surgery have combined to make Farrell’s future a topic of debate. Even if Eddie Jones’ captain, who is now 30, returns instantly when he returns for Saracens this month, management will be aware of what happened around this time last year. Exhibit A will be Jones’ unfortunate decision to keep faith in some rusty Saracens who helped Scotland win at Twickenham for the first time since 1983. Once bitten, twice shy? With Courtney Lawes impressing as a backup skipper, Farrell’s captaincy is also less essential than it was. Given Smith’s fall promise, it would be a retrograde step not to start the Harlequin at 10. That leaves three options for Farrell: trade him to center, leave him on the bench, or reserve him for later in the tournament. If Manu Tuilagi is fit, he and Henry Slade are currently the best combination of English center. But who wouldn’t want Farrell’s warrior example, iron will, and goal kicker? On a cold, dark night in Murrayfield, there could be a case for the bank’s option.

2) Who starts at number 8?

Let’s say what is obvious. The best No. 8 in the Premiership this season has been Harlequins’ Alex Dombrandt. Those who still consider it a frivolous risk clearly missed the Big Game at Twickenham right after Christmas. It’s not just the way the 24-year-old shows up in all the right places, it’s the depth of rugby’s intelligence when he does it. His angles of attack are beautifully chosen, he maintains his depth to ensure he can dash for the ball, and his understanding with Smith seems telepathic. However, Jones, of late, chose Tom Curry at eight with Dombrandt on the bench, preferring the defensive excellence of Sam Underhill alongside Lawes in the back row. However, against Scotland, England will need more oomph to carry the ball and Dombrandt’s breaking skills will also come in handy, which is difficult for dynamic Sam Simmonds, Billy Vunipola and potentially Underhill. But now is the time for Jones to look forward, not back.

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3) Is it necessary to restart the scrum?

In all the excitement surrounding England’s breathless 27-26 victory over world champions Springboks in November, it was possible to overlook England’s second-half scrum and maul tribulations. True, their supportive actions were diminished by Covid and injuries, propelling Sale’s Bevan Rodd into the limelight, but England has not been ruling the set pieces with the iron fist Jones seeks. It would also be an exaggeration to say that Kyle Sinckler and Will Stuart have been sweeping at the club level, even if the scrum is never a one-man operation. The two outstanding Premiership props rated in English right now are probably Joe Marler and Dan Cole, but would Jones like to look back at the last four months before he turned 35? Harlequins’ Will Collier would hold out for a finale, but is he going to win a World Cup? This is also a great Six Nations for Matt Proudfoot, England’s scrum coach. While Proudfoot helped South Africa achieve glory at the 2019 World Cup, his resume is not without patches. He won four games for Scotland through his Dumfries-born grandmother without tasting victory and also endured a nasty covid attack just before the 2021 Six Nations when England finished fifth. He will be looking forward to a more optimistic start to 2022.

Manu Tuilagi injured his hamstring while scoring against South Africa in November, but aims to prove his fitness for Sale on January 30.
Manu Tuilagi injured his hamstring while scoring against South Africa in November, but aims to prove his fitness for Sale on January 30. Photograph: Tom Jenkins / The Guardian

4) What if Tuilagi is not ready?

Invariably it seems to be touch and go with Tuilagi. All that hard work getting the team done in the fall and it lasted just eight minutes against South Africa before he broke his hamstring. This time around, his aim is to prove his fitness against his former club Leicester on January 30, just six days before England take on Murrayfield. It feels worryingly tight already, the timeline, not the hamstring, unless Jones is really desperate. This could, as mentioned above, reopen the door for Farrell or potentially an alternative 12. Gloucester center Mark Atkinson has come through numerous blocks, will like to question his clubmate Chris Harris in Scotland midfield and has a deft kicking game. Failing that, Jones could lead Slade to 12 and keep faith in Joe Marchant, who was influential against South Africa, or quietly remember the criminally underrated Saracen Alex Lozowski. Jones has already chosen 20 pairs from different centers during his tenure and a number 21 may be in the making.

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5) Are there any uncapped X-factors out there?

Let’s go back to this time last year and who were the exciting and fresh newcomers to the team? A step forward Paolo Odogwu and Harry Randall who, for various reasons, did not play a minute of Six Nations rugby with each other. As a result, we still don’t really know if they have it or not. It was a similar story with Louis Lynagh last fall. This time expect Alfie Barbeary from Wasps to be there or nearby when the squad list is revealed. So prodigious is his power to carry the ball that the 21-year-old has been encouraged to switch from hooker to the third row and also loves a challenge, as highlighted in his club’s latest meeting with Leicester last Sunday. The time has also come for England to identify their preferred scrum-half and wing options and then stick with them. If Alex Mitchell and Adam Radwan are going to be members of the World Cup team, now is the time to trust them more.

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6) Will Scotland be too good in spite of everything?

Notably, this year’s championship will be as competitive as a sack of hungry ferrets. England fans may also remember Storm Ciara, who made the corresponding 2020 match even more difficult. Without a costly error in judgment from Stuart Hogg, who handed over the five-meter scrum platform from which Ellis Genge scored the game’s only attempt, England could now be traveling north without having defeated their hosts in the Six Nations during five years. Scotland’s team sheet will be well stocked with Lions and last year they won both in London and Paris. In the past, England was ambushed by something they didn’t see coming, but those days are long gone. And Jacob Rees-Mogg has already written the local team talk before the game.

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