Quote ="DHM"Depends what you mean by "rugby". Throwing the ball all over was the game plan back in the ealry late 70's and 80's because it was thought we had a skill advantage over the Aussies. Back then we had ball players who had skills way beyond what we have now and it still didn't work.
So for me "rugby" means not hitting the ball one up - we have to change the point of attack but sensibly - using FGB's little offloads, two or three passes from the ruck to get a bit of space, no stupid offloads but hit, spin and pop a few times to keep the defence guessing. Then back it all up with mistake free handling and defence and most importantly kick well off the right tackle.
Then when we get in the right part of the field Tomkins, Watkins, Hall and all dangerous and FFS let's not panic on the last play near their line. I'd prefer us to all that right which we have yet to see.'"
If you ask me, yes, he might show the leadership qualities to GUIDE HIS TEAM in unlocking most Super League teams on his day, but Sinfield has had opportunity after opportunity in challenging the Aussies and has come up short each time. Him and Widdop do seem like steady players, but I think highly-conservative rugby is exactly what we need to get away from, and has been pretty much our game-plan when we've folded against the Aussies over the years.
Now onto the halfbacks I would choose. Considering Brough at 7, it's no fluke that he's been named captain of the Huddersfield side. He has the greatest kicking game in the competition (yes, even greater than Sinfield's). The control of the ball that is shown when he kicks is for all to see, and he has the nippy, pacey Rob-Burrow-effect to unlock defences. I'm sure others will agree with what I'm saying. Brough has proven his ability years before this season, and it's unjust for him not to be considered for the England team based on Huddersfield's tendency to choke near the business end of the season. The England side should be picked with the game-plan and individual form and ability in mind, not the successes of the side the players for. (The Briscoe versus Charnley debate is tainted with this mindset. Briscoe is streets ahead of Charnley in all aspects of the game. Briscoe has amazing strength, speed, and will be able to relieve England of a lot of pressure from picking up doggies and scooting when Australia have us camped in our own 20, although Charnley will be picked based on the successes of the team he plays for.)
Our best player with the actual undoubted ability to challenge the Australian side is obviously Tomkins, everybody knows that. Because every one knows this, McNamara must do what he can to limit the weaknesses of his game while maintaining his strengths. We can't afford our best player to experience lapses in confidence when he's dropped a high-kick near his own line. Due to that fact, and that Tomkins shows some frailties in defence at fullback, and that he displays every week his ability to not only be devastating in broken play but also to create a situation of broken play, he has to play at 6.
What you will also see throughout the remainder of this year is also Lomax demonstrating that he has the ability akin to Tomkins in terms of seeing the gap when he's in space at fullback. Albeit, not as great, however his defensive prowess and safety under the high ball over Tomkins warrants his selection as fullback for England. Lomax wasn't as successful as Tomkins when he played 6 for Saints because although he had an eye for a gap, he didn't have the elusive running style to create space for himself like I've explained Tomkins does. He does though, have the momentum-based running style that's so important for a fullback nowadays, and why players like Greg Inglis in the NRL now flourish in that position. This along with his safety in defence and under the high-ball is enough to warrant his place as fullback with Tomkins switching to 6.
So when I say that we need to stray away from a highly-conservative game-plan I'm not advocating that we throw the ball about like fools. I'm saying that the rest of the team, (Burgess, Graham, Westwood, Ellis, Roby, Farrell) a pack with brains, the urgency to play the ball quickly and a great work-rate is needed to maintain a steady ship until some opportunity arises where X-factor is needed. This will certainly not be there should we need it if Sinfield and Widdop play. If England receive several penalties, camp on Australia's line and fail to score, you can bet they will punish us with a try not long after. We cannot afford this to happen, we must take our chances when we are gifted the field position. Concentrating too much on defensive safety in the pivotal positions such as 6 and 7 will be the downfall of our World Cup.
