Mike Tindall will lead England in their opening World Cup Pool B match in Dunedin against Argentina
The Rugby World Cup in New Zealand is less than 24 hours away and Martin Johnson has laid down a marker of his intention for the tournament by naming a dangerous team to face Argentina. Injury rules out Mark Cueto and Lewis Moody, however, the side at Johnson’s will definitely be up to the task of getting a crucial first pool victory over the Pumas.
Mike Tindall Captains the side in Moody’s absence, after his performance in Dublin a few weeks ago it is clear that there will be plenty of leadership from the Gloucester centre. This will be a key factor especially as the young Manu Tuilagi partners him at outside-centre. Tuilagi has raw talent, there is no doubt about that, but now he faces a World Cup environment for the first time. This will be a daunting prospect, but he will step up to the task. Many suggest that Tuilagi will revitalise the back-line, he brings the same physical presence as Shontayne Hape, yet he is a talented attacking threat able to release the likes of Chris Ashton and Delon Armitage. Tuilagi’s inclusion will be just what England needs as he will make breaks through the Argentinian line and Ashton will hopefully be on his outside shoulder able to cause real damage in Dunedin. You know what you get from Tindall, he will be a defensive rock for England; however, he showed a new side to him when he set up Armitage for his try in Dublin. Tindall’s deft chip behind the Irish rush defence shows that there is life in the old dog yet.
The back-three selected for England will be a real worry for Argentina; Ben Foden, Chris Ashton and Delon Armitage can score tries from anywhere on the field. The Pumas will have to be weary when Foden comes into the attacking line; he can pick running lines as well as any other full-backs in the tournament and has the pace to stretch defences. Defensively, Foden is technically great, he is able to haul opposing wings in to touch at the last minute and he can field the high ball with a commanding presence in the air. In Ashton’s short International career to date, we have seen his attacking nous and searing pace. His try against Australia must go down as one of the best tries to have ever been scored at Twickenham, the length of the field effort was outstanding. The rugby league convert will be looking to make headlines once again with his ‘swan dive’, Johnson has rebuked him for his showmanship, but England fans will not care as long as he gets the ball down. Mark Cueto has been ruled out due to a back injury; however, Delon Armitage is a fantastic replacement, the London Irish utility back has an outstanding attacking game and is a more capable finisher than Cueto.
The reliable Jonny Wilkinson starts at fly-half for England after an impressive warm-up period. Toby Flood will be a key member of the squad, either as an impact player off the bench or as a starting fly-half in some Pool matches, however, Wilkinson’s experience and superior goal kicking game has been chosen by Martin Johnson. One only has to look back to the World Cups in 2003 and 2007 to see the impact that Wilkinson has on important matches; he knows how to handle the pressure and will give his forwards the territory needed to put pressure on opponents. Wilkinson is partnered by Richard Wigglesworth at scrum-half, the Saracens man may not have been expecting to start in the first game in New Zealand, but injury ruled out Danny Care and there are still fitness worries over Ben Youngs. Wigglesworth did look sharp at times in the warm-up matches and he needs a big performance to assure England fans that he is capable of making the number 9 shirt his own. The Saracens scrum-half is a similar number 9 to Danny Care, he will look to take penalties and free kicks quickly and he will dart around the edges of the breakdown.
The back-row is an area of real strength for England; Tom Croft, James Haskell and Nick Easter have been given the nod to start. There is an excellent balance with the pace and agility of Croft and the sheer power of Haskell and Easter. Croft will be a useful line-out option, an area that will be vital during the World Cup, an efficient line-out is key to progression in the tournament. Haskell is a powerful presence in the open side position, he will be an imposing opponent at the breakdown and he will look to knock opposing forwards backwards in the loose. Easter has recovered from his injury that ruled him out of the test in Ireland and will be another experience leader in the England side. His aggressive ball carrying will be vital to England getting over the gain line and he will want to make sure that Haskell does not steal the No. 8 shirt from him
Courtney Lawes and Louis Deacon start in the second-row; Lawes will look to improve after a disappointing Test in Ireland where he threw away a try-scoring position and looked a bit rusty with ball in hand, whilst Deacon will provide another reliable line-out jumper. It is interesting that Tom Palmer and the veteran warrior Simon Shaw have been side-lined for this match; Martin Johnson has clearly opted for a more dynamic duo. Lawes and Deacon will both provide more pace than Palmer and Shaw however; they will still look to be just as robust in the loose. Lawes on his day has the potential to compete with the best players in the World; it will be a real test for him to come up against some of the most experienced second rows in World Rugby as England progress through the tournament. Against Argentina England will want their set-piece to operate well to ease them into the tournament, Lawes and Deacon must be aggressive and work hard as there are two capable replacements for them in the squad.
The Argentinians have a powerful pack; so Andrew Sheridan, Steve Thompson and Dan Cole will have to be industrious in the scrum. Sheridan has struggled with injury in recent years, but it is promising to see him back in the team, he had a fantastic tournament in 2007 as he tore the Australian scrum to pieces in the Quarter-Final. He will need to be just as destructive as he faces the highly experienced Rodrigo Roncero, Mario Ledesma and Juan Figallo. The World Cup winner in 2003 Steve Thompson gets the nod ahead of Dylan Hartley, this is the most controversial call in the team. Hartley was on fine form for Northampton; however, Thompson does the basics well and is perhaps a slightly stronger scrummager that Hartley. Hartley will look to come off the bench and force his way back into a starting position. Dan Cole makes up the final member of the front-row, the Leicester man will look to assert himself against the Pumas as he faces strong competition from Matt Stephens. His set-piece work will have to be excellent, Stephens has been on top form with Saracens and had a promising warm-up period and he will feel disappointed to miss out.
Prediction: England by 12 Martin Johnson’s men may stutter in the 1st half and the wet weather could make the start to the World Cup difficult; however, their back-three are so dangerous that when the game opens up in the 2nd half England will overpower the Pumas.
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