Exceptional Ford Central to Defeating the Kiwis
George Ford was selected to start facing the Kiwis ahead of Marcus Smith and Fin Smith.
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In November 2024, national team playmaker George Ford looked disheartened on the Allianz Stadium turf.
Ford had been summoned as a substitute to support the hosts close out a memorable triumph facing the Kiwis, yet was unable to score a late penalty plus a drop-goal attempt as England were beaten in a close contest.
Following those costly misses, Ford had to work hard to secure another chance at delivering glory to the English team.
He played only 25 minutes throughout the Six Nations tournament but a string of impressive performances, notably in the summer matches against Argentina and the USA when the Smith players had departed for Lions tour commitments, returned him solidly among starting candidates.
The veteran player fully validated Steve Borthwick's faith by selecting him against the All Blacks, but the Sale Sharks playmaker delivered a player-of-the-match performance to support England to their initial victory versus the Kiwis at home ending a drought dating to 2012.
The pivotal moment occurred as Ford nailed back-to-back drop-goals right before half-time.
This assisted England overcome a 12-0 deficit to reduce the margin to 12-11 at the break, before Borthwick's star-studded bench repeatedly excelled after halftime to help his side to a convincing 33-19 triumph.
"You have to give credit to the senior players within our side, especially George," the coach stated. "During that phase when he converted those drop-goals, he directed play absolutely brilliantly.
"Last year I believed Ford entered and performed very effectively [versus the All Blacks].
"One kick struck the post and he tried a difficult drop-goal, yet he performed excellently.
"He's a tremendous guide, a superb performer and an even better person. We are fortunate to include him on our team."
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Drop-goals 'part of the strategy'
Back in 2024, Ford's failed attempts from the tee were expensive as England lost to New Zealand - but it was an alternate outcome in the recent game.
New Zealand began rapidly at Allianz Stadium, building a 12-point lead through scores from two key players.
Subsequent to Ollie Lawrence's impressive score, Ford's back-to-back drop-goals meant the hosts returned to the changing rooms with psychological advantage.
"The challenging thing in those moments is, when the scoreboard says 12-0, we can stick to our plan and our philosophy the superior method to compete is," Ford said.
"We got ourselves back into contention and we recognized were we to commence the final period strongly, as reserves joined, we would be in a favorable situation.
"Even with fifteen minutes to go, we ended up on our own line after a penalty, thus we encountered obstacles during that phase also.
"I believe this illustrates elite competition requires - who manages best during those situations most effectively."
Both kicks came within a two-minute span as Ford who nailed three drop-kicks during a victory against Argentina in the last global tournament, showed all his 104-cap experience.
Ford successfully executed two drop-goals for Sale in a Prem game conducted in tough circumstances against Bath - this represents an ability he is well-practised in.
"The drop-kicks are consistently planned," Ford stated further.
"Steve is such an incredible coach that he consistently advising me, and rightly so because three points is valuable at any stage of play."
Ford marshalled his team superbly across the pitch all game, executing intelligent kicks - for both attacking and defensive purposes and locating gaps against the defensive line.
His signature tactical bomb additionally troubled the opposing fullback, who mishandled the ball.
Having started the English victory versus the Wallabies during the autumn series, Ford passed on the fly-half position to Fin Smith against Fiji seven days later.
However the greatest challenge theoretically this season came against the three-time world champions, with Ford regaining his position.
England, presently maintaining ten consecutive victories, face Argentina in late November and curiosity remains to learn whether the coach returns to Fin Smith or persists with Ford.
Whatever choice occurs, Ford established with two years remaining from a World Cup that ample opportunity of career ahead within him.
Related topics
- National Team
- Competition
