The obvious question England are now faced with

This was a magical night. Marseille’s air, so used to the mistral winds that whip around the Velodrome, seemed to tingle with the electricity that seeing a dear old friend can bring you. England fans reunited with drop goals, with thumping midfield hits, with hope. George Ford’s three mammoth, first-half drop goals sailed on that Southern French breeze and the effect was felt all the way back in Blighty.

England were being brought back together with a familiar acquaintance: winning. And it felt good.

Magical and weird though. Weird that it should come from such a source. Drop goals haven’t really been in vogue of late and you have to wonder how much they were spoken about this week by any England fan. Credit to the team; it must have been considered as a route to getting on the board and Ford found himself in a curious conundrum: Curry’s red card pushed the emphasis from tries to points and having nailed one audacious effort, he tried again from even further out, and a third time to turn a screw few had even considered England being able to locate. 27th, 31st and 37th minute: ten minutes that swivelled every English head to face a welcome consciousness: there is a way out of here.

I don’t know if we will ever hear the truth but if the Curry head clash had not happened, was Ford always going to drop goals? Or was it a sublime piece of calculation and ‘in the moment’ thinking? Ford is like that. He takes opportunities very well. You have to wonder if, in doing so, what sort of opportunity he has presented England?

Regardless, Argentina crumpled like a punctured lung. And their gasping breaths only heralded England’s forgotten men. Cole, Itoje, Lawes, Tuilagi started to appear and control areas of the pitch like they hadn’t done in ages. Earl clamped, Chessum pumped his legs, Steward clambered into the night sky like a man who’d just bought a new, stronger step ladder.

The men in blue and white hoops could not gather their thoughts, let alone the ball, and the more they looked cut adrift from their own game plan, the more England seemed to take to theirs. This was a method Borthwick had been working on for weeks and one that had seemed madness previously, but here, against a listless Argentine XV, it bore fleshy fruit. Kick, chase, penalty. Kick, chase, penalty. England’s lead escalated quickly out of South American sight. Referee Raynal’s arm pointed the way, and England marched to a healthy, if pragmatic, victory.

And then late on, the camera panned up and found Owen Farrell. A broad Wigan smile on his face for his most favourite of mates. A penny for his thoughts, though. A man clapping a rejuvenating display he was not part of. Surely, Captain Farrell gets back into this England side but where do you play him? Manu had one of his best games ever at 12 and moving Ford out after that performance would be close to sacrilege.

If Farrell has a super strength it’s game management but we witnessed game management par excellence from Ford. Inside him, Mitchell fulfilled his promise of quick ball and must have the shirt for now. Does he get more time in the saddle in the next game (Japan)? Or do you give Youngs or Care back the reins and hope they can take inspiration?

22m Entries

Avg. Points Scored

2.4

5

Entries

Avg. Points Scored

1.4

5

Entries

Strangely, England’s win on first glance seemed to provide answers but you have to feel it conjures up a lot of questions, too. Do you build on what we got tonight (try and score some tries) with the same outfit or do you change things up? I would suspect the latter and hope the new blood pumping through the squad’s collective veins can propel the likes of Marcus Smith, Ollie Lawrence, Max Malins, Henry Arundell to rediscover their natural affection for line breaks and exciting rugby.

Speaking of which, were there any line breaks in this game? England didn’t really look like scoring other than from Ford’s boot? I’ve just rewatched the highlights and 85 per cent of the footage is of George Ford kicking a ball. The rest is the two incidents that led to the yellow cards; one of which turned into a red.

Hang on, so enrapt with the way that England bewitched the scoreboard, have we been misdirected? This was an ugly game made pretty by a winning feeling that was only appealing because of its previous absence. This is like meeting up with an old friend. That first hour or two is joyous and then something they do reminds you why you grew apart; why you don’t keep in touch. This is still them. They haven’t so much as changed as got a new trick. A new way of hiding their truth.

Can George Ford drop kick England to victory throughout this tournament? That seems like an odd and limited game plan. Or does it? Is this a different England or just an England that capitalised on some quick, individualistic thinking against a really poor side? No, no, no, no, this was a magical night and England have a win against their name, when so many people thought it wasn’t going to happen. This feels good. Doesn’t it? This isn’t just an illusion, this is real. England are back and England are winning. Aren’t they?

“You can tell it with those players, they seem to have more time…” countered Borthwick in the press conference, when speaking of Ford. “He’s kicking those drop goals, it felt like he had lots of time, he’s kicking those high balls, it felt like he had more time than other players do. And I think that’s the sign of a real top quality player…”

That in itself is deceit: the ability to bend the passing of seconds to your will. And Ford’s greatest sorcery is that he has given this England side and Head Coach exactly what they needed: time and belief.

It is down to them as to what they can do with it.