I feel like on the most part the country agrees that the first England team to face Fiji is pretty much settled now. There’s a brief question over the centres, and possibly the second row. But the biggest question of all, I believe, sits at hooker – Jamie George or Tom Youngs?
I fear that Tom Youngs is probably going to get the nod, a decision which can only be based on international experience. Not rugby talent. We all saw how shocking the line-out was against France in Paris and I can’t help but feel the second row forwards wrongly got the blame for that. It is evident that the issue with the line-out lies with the man throwing the ball into play. On Saturday against Ireland, and against France in Paris, when Jamie George came on the improvement in the set piece was clear to see.
The choice between the two comes down to what you want your hooker to offer? Tom Youngs is a superb athlete and can run better than most hookers. In the loose he really is in a league of his own on the international stage. But when you play in a position that is so pivotal for two of the most important set pieces in the game of rugby – scrum and lineout throw-in, skill in that area has to come first; and in Jamie George it does.
The scrum was disastrous. England didn’t win 100% on the scrum when they had the put in against Ireland
To address the question of international experience, in favour of George I have one retort: European rugby. He has played more domestic European rugby in his career than Tom Youngs. Jamie George has made 16 appearances in the last two years in Europe and has appeared in one final and one semi-final. Youngs has made 18 in his whole career which started in the 2006 /2007 campaign and only 14 appearances in the last two years. Does this negate the test match experience that Tom Youngs holds over Jamie George? I think it does. I think going to the quarter final and onwards of a European competition holds a lot more weight than some test matches that Tom Youngs has been a part of. Moreover, Tom Youngs hasn’t played the majority of the test matches in this period either: it has been Dylan Hartley – which tells you how close the gap truly is between George and Youngs.
And this is the crux of the whole problem: Dylan Hartley. Here is a world class hooker, who would see both of them off, maybe if Hartley was in the squad, Jamie George would not have made it at all. But like all great players you can only take your opportunity when it is presented to you. I feel that Jamie George is a closer resemblance to Harltey than Tom Youngs . George is the better all-round player and is built in the same mould as Hartley.
The scrum was disastrous against Ireland. Not just my opinion but that of most of the reports I have read about game since. England did not win 100% possession in the scrum when they had the put in. This cannot happen in the Word Cup and the blame must lie with the hooker in this instance. When in such a key position, you must be able to get the ball out of the scrum – its the reason the position is named hooker. I don’t know if George would manage it any better but I am inclined to think he might having watched the way he looks after himself in Europe and in the Aviva Premiership.
Finally, the last thing you want to do is strengthen your line-out after an hour. You want it clicking from the start. You want to be able to rely on it from the word go – especially if you are up against some of the best kickers in the world like: Quade Cooper, Dan Biggar, Dan Carter and Freddie Michilak who can pin you back and put your throw under pressure. You want it to be the most reliable throw in your arsenal. Plus how you gain an advantage here is by pulling on a fantastic in-the-loose Hooker in the 60th minute against the tired legs of the opposition forwards would be a fantastic second option for your game plan. If you reverse this game plan it makes no logical sense – as you could have already conceded the points and clawing them back is out of your reach.
Against Ireland, Tom Youngs was the second highest tackler on the field after Chris Robshaw – a stat which is impressive and a stat that seriously backs up his credentials for starting in a World Cup. We all know defences win championships and this no truer than in the Rugby World Cup. Every World Cup the champions have been the team that have conceded the least amount of points and played the most amount of matches – its clearly no coincidence. But like all statistics this one is greatly unfair on Jamie George. He didn’t get to play an hour of rugby and therefore who knows how he would have matched up on that list.
Whoever retains the number two jersey in a week’s time will offer something useful I believe. For English rugby’s hopes sake, I just hope that either persons weaknesses do not get exploited, or that the selection might possibly cost England in what will be one of the very tightest and very hardest group to get out of.
“Main photo”
