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Woodward names the one 'major learning for the future' for Borthwick
By Josh Raisey
Sir Clive Woodward has questioned the timing of England head coach Steve Borthwick’s substitutions after their 33-31 loss to France in the final round of the Guinness Six Nations.
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The World Cup-winning coach was effusive in his praise of England after a third-place finish in the Championship, paying credit to Borthwick in his Daily Mail column after a “strong campaign” with “so many positives for England”.
The 68-year-old’s only criticism remains the timing of the substitutions made by the head coach, saying the changes made in Lyon were unnecessary.
England raced to a 24-16 lead within seven minutes of the start of the second half, overturning a six-point deficit at half-time. Those tries preceded wholesale changes to England’s front-row.
England did not score again for another half-hour, as the hosts surged back into the lead. While there was nothing in the match to suggest those changes were the cause of France’s comeback, Woodward still feels they were not needed.
“One thing I’d still like Borthwick to do is a bit more thought on substitutions,” he wrote. “He replaced the entire front row early in the second half against France. Those switches included captain Jamie George.
“I don’t think they were needed. Neither was removing Henry Slade for Manu Tuilagi who was having a strong game. Why take off your best players, especially your captain? That’s a major learning for the future but overall, well done Steve.”
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Woodward was particularly complimentary of Ellis Genge, crowning the loosehead as his player of the match. The Bristol Bears star was taken off as part of the front-row switch just moments after putting Ben Earl through a gap in the build-up to Marcus Smith’s try.
“I thought Ellis Genge was just outstanding and for me man of the match. He scrummaged well, was strong in defence, and showed some nice passing. There is no doubt England have got a more-than-promising team if they approach games with an all-out attacking mindset.”
SCW really struggles to follow the modern game, doesn't he?
“Substitutions weren't needed”? Huh?
There are lots of reasons for doing substitutions, other than them being obviously or immediately needed. Coaches are managing workload and test minutes for individual players, they are building depth, giving players opportunities to prove themselves, experimenting with combinations and tactics, creating competition for places, preparing for future opponents etc.
We also do not have access to the GPS data, which tells coaches precisely how tired players are, how quickly they are resetting in defense etc. Starters are told to empty the tank, and coaches watch the fuel guage in real time. They see that a player is off the pace long before fans do.
Lastly, the Bomb Squad mindset is about playing the last 15-20 minutes with a fresher, stronger and quicker team than the tired opposition. Under current substitution rules Borthwick will need to groove this kind of strategy to be competitive.
Coaching in SCW’s day could afford to be naively outcome-oriented. But today coaches have to focus on process and let the score take care of itself. That’s the way to deliver consistent wins. And there will be mixed results until the process kicks in.
The good news for England is that the processes seem to be coming together, including in defense, attack, set pieces and game management. As relates to substitutions, without understanding the context and the intent we really can’t say whether they achieved their goals, but regardless, we do know that the substitutions did not derail the win.