Only Scott Hansen can save England
England
Match thread
Ireland 2026 6N
Shocker by Smith, giving up against a guy that's played the whole game who wasn't even catching him. Yuck
England have done a great job of picking the wrong option on many crucial attacking plays. Unreal, could have scored that try many phases before.
@game_film said in England v Ireland 2026 6N:
@W32 we must ask ourselves, against whom did they look good? Therein lies the answer
Well they must of looked ok against a few, they had quite the winning run going, but they seem to of fallen off a cliff this last couple of weeks!
By the powers though the Irish who perhaps have looked decidedly average a few times, looked a million bucks didn't they? That was a very good performance by whole team.
@Dan54 when you look at England’s winning run last year (which began when France choked it up in the 6N and Dupont couldn’t catch a cold, but that’s another story for another day)…. They didn’t beat anyone of consequence until arguably the Razor-coached ABs, upending their grand slam attempt.
They beat an Argie team in the summer that was in the middle of its usual ‘which game shall we get up for?’ mindset between beating the Lions and preparing for the RC.
In the Autumn they beat an Oz team who were falling apart by then, the Razor ABs and finished with a tight one over Arg again.
As they say, the signs were there.
I think one of their problems at moment is they just crumbling when it not going to plan. When they get stressed they seem to struggle to find answers!
@Dan54 said in England v Ireland 2026 6N:
I think one of their problems at moment is they just crumbling when it not going to plan. When they get stressed they seem to struggle to find answers!
England or the ABs?
@nzzp said in England v Ireland 2026 6N:
@Dan54 said in England v Ireland 2026 6N:
I think one of their problems at moment is they just crumbling when it not going to plan. When they get stressed they seem to struggle to find answers!
England or the ABs?
Poms, but could work for both
Quality players, poorly coached into a team.
England fans are pretty upset, rightly so, as they played so far beneath the sum of their parts.
Axe will fall.
England are dogshit. How did this team pump us?
Ford was really poor. The midfield is porous and has no lateral movement. Genge ran around missing tackles and dropping ball. Lineout was shit.
Ireland just flogged fuck through them. Same game plan as the last 8 or 9 years but today it worked because England were completely disconnected on defence. JGP looks a million bucks when the game opens up like this, such a good decision maker.
@W32 said in England v Ireland 2026 6N:
Ireland are a different side with Crowley at 10 and Osborne at 15
Admittedly Ireland look better against terrible defence and an invisible backrow, but even then Crowley is miles ahead of Prendergast.
@mariner4life said in England v Ireland 2026 6N:
England are dogshit. How did this team pump us?
Ford was really poor. The midfield is porous and has no lateral movement.
Ford is such a poor defender any gameplan against England should be targeting him specifically to get good front door ball.
Lawrence, too, looked like a well oiled turnstile.
I can't remember seeing him play before, but I thought that Baloucoune looked good on the wing for Ireland. JGP and Beirne were all class again.
@Bones said in England v Ireland 2026 6N:
Shocker by Smith, giving up against a guy that's played the whole game who wasn't even catching him. Yuck
haven't seen the game, don't intend to watch it now, congrats Ireland, hell of a beating at home. Can I just put on record that I've never rated Borthwick, wanted him sacked 18 months ago, still don't rate him. Don't understand how we are suddenly making so many mistakes. Apparently we turned the ball over 38 times in this game. Don't like Ford as the 10 and continue to be annoyed that he hasn't given Finn Smith the AIs and this tournament to get games and experience under his belt. Would like to see Ford dropped.
Don't understand our back row, it lacks grunt, I would have found an excuse to pick Tom Willis in the AIs and in this tournament. Hate our 6-2 bench selection, it involves having too many backline changes when something goes wrong / someone gets injured.
Don't think wholesale player change is the right thing to do but some changes to the XV have to happen now and the bench balance has to change.
I'd expected a reaction to the Scotland game, not sure what happened. Worried about Italy now, didn't expect that at the beginning of the tournament.
@Dodge there's too much talent available to Borthwick to have a practically invisible back row of midgets - not one of them taller than 6'1" in old money. Ireland won on the basis of absolute dominance in this area. The elevation of Pollock was exposed as his most visible contribution was being sent to the naughty chair.
And admittedly a couple of times the bounce of the ball favoured the Irish - an unfortunate and costly one for Genge.
My impression was the breakdown dominance was multiplied by the dreadful defence. Lawrence looked among the worst of the offenders. He should be put of the 23 for the next fixture against Italy.
@antipodean said in England v Ireland 2026 6N:
@Dodge there's too much talent available to Borthwick to have a practically invisible back row of midgets - not one of them taller than 6'1" in old money. Ireland won on the basis of absolute dominance in this area. The elevation of Pollock was exposed as his most visible contribution was being sent to the naughty chair.
And admittedly a couple of times the bounce of the ball favoured the Irish - an unfortunate and costly one for Genge.
My impression was the breakdown dominance was multiplied by the dreadful defence. Lawrence looked among the worst of the offenders. He should be put of the 23 for the next fixture against Italy.
There are two constants for most winning teams, consistency of selection and consistency of game plan
Borthwick is failing on both counts
Been trying to tell you guys Borthwick is a drain since before we even picked up Razor. Get with the times.
@MiketheSnow said in England v Ireland 2026 6N:
There are two constants for most winning teams, consistency of selection and consistency of game plan
Borthwick is failing on both counts
Impressively concise summation, Mike!
@MiketheSnow said in England v Ireland 2026 6N:
There are two constants for most winning teams, consistency of selection and consistency of game plan
Not sure Rassie agrees.
@booboo said in England v Ireland 2026 6N:
@MiketheSnow said in England v Ireland 2026 6N:
There are two constants for most winning teams, consistency of selection and consistency of game plan
Not sure Rassie agrees.
Most 
Ach. What a pile of dogshit from England but not to take away anything from Ireland, who comprehensively outplayed our boys. Out played, out energised, out coached and whatever else you want to add to that. There's something very wrong with the England set up, whether that be game plan, selection, confusion from differing coaching inputs, whatever.
That game, which mirrored the Scotland game to a degree, reminded me of the 2019 RWC final. From the first minute, we were looking like deer in the headlights and everything just unfolded from there. Our defence was woeful and Ireland exploited that magnificently. Our attack was one dimensional and not working. A complete lack of a plan B. This surprises me as Blackett is a clever and innovative coach, is he being reined in? I'd put good money on that.
We are playing so far below the sum of our parts and that has to point at the coaching input/game plan.
Suffocation is the term I feel. In the last 6N there was a rumour that the senior players had strongly protested to Borthwick that they needed to expand their game plan and actually play some rugby and we finished strongly and took that on into the Summer tour and the AIs. The regression in ambition in the 6N has been sickening.