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England hope their 'incredible 15th man' has a new role in Nice
By Liam Heagney
Steve Borthwick has lauded England fans for being their 15th man at the Rugby World Cup in France, but he hopes that role will change on Sunday night in Nice versus Japan.
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The head coach is adamant his team doesn’t have a discipline problem. However, they have had to cope with the receipt of four red cards in their last six matches – and last weekend’s red for Tom Curry against Argentina in Marseille left them having to play 77 minutes a player short.
England responded brilliantly, George Ford kicking them to a 27-10 opening-round success at Stade Velodrome, and Borthwick described the backing they received from the stands on the night as being as good as anything he previously experienced across his near 20-year involvement with the national team as either a player or coach.
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“There was lots I was pleased about in terms of that performance,” said Borthwick, reflecting on the England display in Marseille to help[ the scene for their upcoming challenge on Nice. “What I will acknowledge – and it’s important to acknowledge – is the supporters, I thought they were outstanding.
“When you go down to 14 men after two minutes, certainly in the stands it was as if the supporters recognised the gap, they recognised that void and the supporters stepped into it and became our 15th player.
“I thought they were absolutely incredible. I have been privileged to be involved with this team since 2000 in one way or another for most of that period with a couple of blocks away and that was as good as I ever heard the English support.
“As with everything with this World Cup, what has gone before is not the most important thing. The most important thing is what is about to come and we look to this game on Sunday night. We have got a really good team.
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“It’s 23 players who wear that England shirt and they will be roared on by a lot of England supporters who this week aim to be the 16th man supporting this team and ensuring that we perform. We have got big players who perform on the biggest of occasions and this is another big occasion.
“Last week the players worked through a situation brilliantly and that is an immense credit to what they did. Now what we have got to do is find another way to get the result that we want against a completely different opponent on Sunday night.”
