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'Alun Wyn Jones captain for the Lions. End of' - Itoje penalty count blows captaincy debate wide open

(Photo By Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile via Getty Images)

Warren Gatland was one of the few spectators at the Principality Stadium on Saturday for Wales’ Guinness Six Nations win over England, but even he may not have expected to learn so much from the contest.

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The match not only had a sweep of potential starters for the British and Irish Lions on display, but was effectively an audition for Gatland’s leading captaincy candidates too.

One of those was Maro Itoje, who exhibited the full spectrum of what he brings to any match. The Saracens lock showed his best; inexorable in putting scrum-half Kieran Hardy under immense pressure and contributing with dominant hits.

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Eddie Jones faces the press after defeat to Wales:

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Eddie Jones faces the press after defeat to Wales:

But a penalty count of five, and a tournament total of ten, is less flattering.

Heading into this year’s Championship, the question may have been who was going to partner the Saracen in the engine room against South Africa. But a combination of his own form and the form of his competitors has now thrown the debate wide open.

Eddie Jones has been swift to defend his star man, saying referees tend to “over-referee” him. When looking back, three of his penalties could well have been overlooked on another day.

The deliberate knock-on, playing the ball on the floor and an offside call were all as marginal as decisions go, but Itoje has a reputation of playing the game on the edge and that may be at the back of referees’ minds. Jones knows that, and so will Gatland.

The worst thing for the 26-year-old is that this is not an ideal time to encounter these problems, particularly in his position. While it is almost a certainty that he will make the Lions squad, there is so much depth in the second-row department that players can ill-afford to underperform.

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Of the five locks that were originally selected in 2017, only George Kruis is no longer in contention to travel this year. With James Ryan all but guaranteed to be selected, or even start against the Springboks, and Tadhg Beirne and Jonny Gray making a great account of themselves this year, the second-row contest is reaching fever pitch.

With Saracens playing a season in the IPA Greene King Championship, Itoje does not even have domestic and European competitions after the Six Nations to show he has ironed out his problems. If his current ill-discipline is a product of a lack of playing time so far in 2021, that issue will not be alleviated after the Six Nations and ahead of the summer.

Saturday may have been conclusive for some in determining the Lions captain, with Alun Wyn Jones getting the better of Itoje and Farrell. That seems to be the case for former Wales No8 Andy Powell. By virtue of that, there is only one other second-row vacancy to fill for the first Test against the Springboks, although Itoje remains an option at No6 as well.

The Wales captain has by no means been squeaky clean this Championship and has a penalty count of six, with four of those coming against Scotland. But the timing of penalties is sometimes more significant than the quantity, and Itoje’s four in the opening half-hour may have been excused had he not jumped across the lineout in the final quarter to gift Wales the lead again when the scores were 24-24. What’s more, as the most experienced player in Test history and having worked with Gatland for over a decade, the Welshman has less to prove.

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Itoje still remains one of the best and most influential players on the planet though, but his oppressive style comes at a price at the moment. Penalties may always be an inevitability due to the way he plays, but he has two more matches this Six Nations to convince Gatland that it is a price worth paying.

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O
Oh no, not him again? 2 hours ago
England internationals disagree on final play execution vs All Blacks

Okay, so we blew it big time on Saturday. So rather than repeating what most people have all ready said, what do I want to see from Borthwick going forward?


Let's keep Marcus Smith on the pitch if he's fit and playing well. I was really pleased with his goal kicking. It used to be his weakness. I feel sympathy for George Ford who hadn't kicked all match and then had a kick to win the game. You hear pundits and commentators commend kickers who have come off the bench and pulled that off. Its not easy. If Steve B continues to substitute players with no clear reason then he is going to get criticised.


On paper I thought England would beat NZ if they played to their potential and didn't show NZ too much respect. Okay, the off the ball tackles certainly stopped England scoring tries, but I would have liked to see more smashing over gainlines and less kicking for position. Yes, I also know it's the Springbok endorsed world cup double winning formula but the Kiwi defence isn't the Bok defence, is it. If you have the power to put Smith on the front foot then why muzzle him? I guess what I'm saying is back, yourself. Why give the momentum to a team like NZ? Why feed the beast? Don't give the ball to NZ. Well d'uh.


Our scrum is a long term weakness. If you are going to play Itoje then he needs an ogre next door and a decent front row. Where is our third world class lock? Where are are realible front row bench replacements? The England scrum has been flakey for a while now. It blows hot and cold. Our front five bench is not world class.


On the positive side I love our starting backrow right now. I'd like to see them stick together through to the next world cup.


Anyway, there is always another Saturday.

7 Go to comments
C
CO 2 hours ago
Scott Robertson responds to criticism over All Blacks' handling errors

Robertson is more a manager of coaches than a coach so it comes down to intent of outcomes at a high level. I like his intent, I like the fact his Allblacks are really driving the outcomes however as he's pointed out the high error rates are not test level and their control of the game is driving both wins and losses. England didn't have to play a lot of rugby, they made far fewer mistakes and were extremely unlucky not to win.


In fact the English team were very early in their season and should've been comfortably beaten by an Allblacks team that had played multiple tests together.


Razor has himself recognised that to be the best they'll have to sort out the crisis levels of mistakes that have really increased since the first two tests against England.


Early tackles were a classic example of hyper enthusiasm to not give an inch, that passion that Razor has achieved is going to be formidable once the unforced errors are eliminated.


That's his secret, he's already rebuilt the passion and that's the most important aspect, its inevitable that he'll now eradicate the unforced errors. When that happens a fellow tier one nation is going to get thrashed. I don't think it will be until 2025 though.


The Allblacks will lose both tests against Ireland and France if they play high error rates rugby like they did against England.


To get the unforced errors under control he's going to be needing to handover the number eight role to Sititi and reset expectations of what loose forwards do. Establish a clear distinction with a large, swarthy lineout jumper at six that is a feared runner and dominant tackler and a turnover specialist at seven that is abrasive in contact. He'll then need to build depth behind the three starters and ruthlessly select for that group to be peaking in 2027 in hit Australian conditions on firm, dry grounds.


It's going to help him that Savea is shifting to the worst super rugby franchise where he's going to struggle behind a beaten pack every week.


The under performing loose forward trio is the key driver of the high error rates and unacceptable turn overs due to awol link work. Sititi is looking like he's superman compared to his openside and eight.


At this late stage in the season they shouldn't be operating with just the one outstanding loose forward out of four selected for the English test. That's an abject failure but I think Robertson's sacrificing link quality on purpose to build passion amongst the junior Allblacks as they see the reverential treatment the old warhorses are receiving for their long term hard graft.


It's unfortunately losing test matches and making what should be comfortable wins into nail biters but it's early in the world cup cycle so perhaps it's a sacrifice worth making.


However if this was F1 then Sam Cane would be Riccardo and Ardie would be heading into Perez territory so the loose forwards desperately need revitalisation through a rebuild over the next season to complement the formidable tight five.

28 Go to comments
LONG READ
LONG READ England need to face a few home truths if they are to relearn that winning habit England need to face a few home truths if they are to relearn that winning habit
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