Raw England no worry for Lancaster
Interim coach Stuart Lancaster is confident one of the most inexperienced England teams in championship history will avoid stage fright when they face Wales in the Six Nations at Twickenham.
Although the average age of both youthful line-ups is 25, World Cup semifinalists Wales’s starting side boast a combined 488 caps to their England counterparts’ 182.
Indeed England will be fielding their most inexperienced championship side since 1989 at Twickenham on Saturday.
As if to emphasise the gap in experience, there are more caps on Wales’s bench (216) than are in England’s starting side.
In all seven members of the first XV unveiled by Lancaster on Thursday – skipper Chris Robshaw, No.8 Ben Morgan, locks Geoff Parling and Mouritz Botha, scrumhalf Lee Dickson, flyhalf Owen Farrell and centre Brad Barritt – will be making their first Test start at Twickenham in front of a sell-out 80,000 crowd.
And the match will also be Lancaster’s first home game in charge after his career as England’s temporary boss started with tournament wins away to Scotland and Italy.
The most eye-catching, if enforced change, to Lancaster’s line-up from the side that came from nine points down to beat Italy in Rome, saw 20-year-old Farrell move from inside centre to flyhalf in place of injured Saracens teammate Charlie Hodgson, out with a cut finger suffered in training.
Meanwhile the powerful Manu Tuilagi, who hasn’t featured for England since the World Cup because of a hamstring injury, is back at outside centre where he will line-up alongside the tough-tackling Barritt as the hosts confront a physical Welsh back division.
Leicester second row Parling was handed his first Test start Thursday in place of Tom Palmer, dropped after England failed to secure enough quality line-out ball against Italy.
Morgan, who plays for Welsh club Scarlets, replaces Phil Dowson after impressing off the bench.
And Dickson, who injected some much needed urgency when coming on in Rome, takes over from Ben Youngs.
“It’s my first time at Twickenham [as England coach] and we’re just going to go and enjoy the occasion,” said Lancaster at England’s training base.
“In developing the team long term, you need to expose these players to this sort of environment.”
Farrell, who as a flyhalf steered Saracens to victory in last season’s Premiership final against Leicester, produced an accomplished kicking display as England overcame a nine-point deficit in Rome in only his second Test and an admiring Lancaster said: “Owen’s temperament speaks for itself.”
The former England reserve team coach could have recalled 46-cap flyhalf Toby Flood, the most experienced player in the squad, to the starting line-up now the Leicester No.10 is fit following a knee injury.
But Lancaster said it was less disruptive to move Farrell to stand-off against a Wales side who top the table after wins over Ireland and Scotland.
“It [Hodgson’s injury] does reduce our caps a bit,” said Lancaster.
“Part of the decision making was about the time we’d spent together. The reality is Toby is coming back from injury and needed games for Leicester. Part of that trade-off is you release him from squad training because he needs game time.
“Owen has been with us from the start, and was at 10 for Saracens when he won the Premiership final.
“Clearly Wales have more experience and the evolution of their team is further down the line.”
England have won away to both Scotland and Italy in their opening two Six Nations matches but have managed just a solitary try in each game, Hodgson charging down for both scores.
However, Lancaster insisted England did have enough of a cutting edge to worry Wales.
“We’ve worked hard on keeping width and depth in attack.
“But games are not won just by scoring tries, they are won by pressure, defence, kicking goals. Against Wales, it’s a game we want to win in all sorts of ways.”
AFP
