With the absence of the reliable and rampaging Manu Tuilagi due to injury, England Head Coach Stuart Lancaster has a centre conundrum on his hands. It is well known that Lancaster has a preference for a ‘ball-player’ at inside-centre and for the other centre to punch holes in the opposition defence. The question is, however, in light of today’s squad announcement for the upcoming Autumn Internationals, who will start in the midfield for England against New Zealand?
Option One: Billy Twelvetrees and Luther Burrell
The 2014 Six Nations saw these two players get thrown together for the first time in England shirts, and boy did they impress, scoring three tries and two assists between them in the five games. No doubt Stuart Lancaster will be more than comfortable to select these players again.
As he showed in the Six Nations, Twelvetrees has all the right attributes to be Lancaster’s ball-player: he can kick well, pass well and has good vision to create opportunities for others, as he proved against Wales, while his partner in crime, Burrell, was used time and again as an effective ball carrying weapon and was instrumental in England’s four wins.
There are, however, questions over Twelvetrees’ consistency and Burrell’s defensive capabilities, and only time will tell us the answers to those questions. But one thing is for sure, there’s no better team in world rugby at exposing player’s weaknesses than the All Blacks, and it remains to be seen whether these two players can exceed expectations and make the step-up to face a Southern Hemisphere side.
Option Two: Kyle Eastmond and Luther Burrell
The alternative ball-playing option for England is Bath centre, Kyle Eastmond. He’s been likened to former England full-back, Jason Robinson, due to his dazzling feet and eye for a gap, and justifiably so: Eastmond has been in electric form for Bath this season, scoring two tries in six games and creating many more. Against New Zealand in the summer, he performed out of his skin in the first test as England nearly came away with a famous victory. The only problem is that his main weakness seems to be identical to that of Burrell, which may actually rule out this combination altogether. On the other hand, this pairing has the potential to be a formidable attacking unit, and could well have the keys to unlock the New Zealand defence.
Option Three: Luther Burrell and Jonathan Joseph
Okay, there is a recurring theme, and no, I’m not a Northampton Saints fan, but the alternative to Luther Burrell, Brad Barritt, seems to be out of the picture for a starting place at the moment, because Burrell’s try scoring record as an England player is unparalleled, and his all round attacking ability in comparison to Barritt’s is of a higher order. However may I add that if Lancaster needs to tighten up that midfield defence, which he may choose to do as the Autumn series goes on, there is no doubt that Brad Barritt is the man he will turn to.
What excites me most about this pair, though, is actually similar to the last pair- the attacking threat- except that in this instance there would be a natural inside-centre (Burrell) playing with a natural outside-centre (Jonathan Joseph), because Joseph is the only centre in the squad who plays at 13 for his club. For this reason, this pairing may actually function more efficiently and at a higher standard, perhaps having more fluidity and a better sense of positioning in defence. So if I was Stuart Lancaster, this partnership would be the solution to the centre conundrum at hand, and could indeed be a great success.
But unfortunately, I’m not Stuart Lancaster. If we’ve learnt anything from Mr. Lancaster since he’s been in charge, it is that he picks his tried-and-tested combinations, and although in my view option three would be the most successful, my view means absolutely nothing. So if it’s Billy Twelvetrees running out alongside Luther Burrell come the 8th November, I won’t be surprised. Alas, I may even be a touch disappointed.
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