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Stuart Lancaster has commented on the pressure his England successor Eddie Jones is now currently under

(Photo by David Rogers/Getty Images)

Former England boss Stuart Lancaster has reflected on his four years in charge at Test level, claiming he was fortunate his team were consistent every year in the Six Nations unlike the yo-yo fortunes being experienced by current boss Eddie Jones. 

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Whereas Lancaster’s teams always finished second in the Six Nations, winning four games out of five in each of the four campaigns he was in charge for, England have endured some erratic seasons under Jones. 

Although crowned champions in three of his six seasons in charge, England have also suffered two fifth-place finishes and there are questions marks about the longevity of Jones in the role following the most recent campaign where defeat to Ireland left them finishing with only Italy behind them on the table just five months after they clinched the 2020 title win.  

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Six Nations standouts and snapshots

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Six Nations standouts and snapshots

Asked about the pressure that surrounds the job of an England coach, Lancaster told The Rugby Pod: “Yeah, there is definitely an expectation. When I started I got the interim job so I had less of that immediate pressure and we won four games out of five that first Six Nations. 

“But then we went to South Africa and it was very early in my tenure with a young team, we lost two narrowly and then drew the third. Then we came to the autumn internationals and we lost the first couple and had New Zealand coming around the corner so the media were building this narrative of four games, five games without a win.

“Fortunately we beat New Zealand and you got that breathing space you needed to kick on and the next Six Nations we won four out of five and kept the media at bay so to speak. I was lucky we were that close to nailing it, we won four games out of five every Six Nations so when you are at England and you’re coming second bottom, pressure will come on irrespective of what happened in the past and the team are clearly feeling that at the moment.”

Despite getting unceremoniously tossed aside following pool stage failure at the 2015 World Cup, current senior Leinster coach Lancaster is immensely proud of his four years in charge which came on the back of a four-year stint working within the RFIU set-up.

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“The irony is that if the bonus point for tries had existed I think we would have won two of those (Six Nations)… I look back with regret with what happened at the end (with the World Cup) but with a lot of pride when I see the team doing so well in 2019, the Six Nations 2016 and everything else that came with it and the younger lads who were one cap, two caps when I took over are now 60, 70, 80 caps leading the team. 

“I probably would have liked a bit more cohesion going into the World Cup. I would have had one more warm-up game, for sure. I actually met Eddie after the World Cup and one thing I said was one more warm-up game. 

“Owen Farrell was injured during the whole of the 2015 Six Nations and (it hindered the) combination between George (Ford) and Owen together, some of the younger players who I knew were going to be talented were still breaking into getting regular slots in their Premiership clubs but overall I felt we were going into it in good shape. 

“We had a tough pool and unfortunately we lost a game (to Wales) that if you played many times over you would win it more often than you would lose it and the consequences, well we know what happened.”

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Intimate gossip about his time as England coach will remain guarded, however, as Lancaster has never felt inclined to open up verbatim on his stint in charge. “I’m quite old-fashioned. A lot of things that go on inside camps, changing rooms and private meetings should remain that way. 

“I also believe in keeping my counsel. I’ll pass on the lessons learnt to the people I think it’s really important to and I have done it to coaches in private settings, I have done it to other sports. I had a call a while ago with Gareth Southgate, the England soccer team, in the lead-up to the World Cup. 

“I’d one not so long ago with England netball, England cricket. Of course, you want to pass on what you have learned. It seems illogical to me to have been at the RFU for eight years and not to pass on what I have learned to coaches. That’s illogical but I wouldn’t use the media as the platform because there is privacy about certain things I would never share anyway.”

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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
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