Outstanding George Ford Central to Overcoming the Kiwis

During November 2024, national team playmaker Ford looked disheartened at Allianz Stadium.

He was called upon as a substitute to assist England close out a famous win against New Zealand, but instead missed a decisive kick plus a drop-goal attempt as his side were beaten by a narrow margin.

Following those costly misses, Ford needed to put in effort to get another shot to achieve success for the national side.

His playing time was limited to 25 minutes throughout the Six Nations tournament however a series of excellent displays, especially during the summer tour of Argentina and the United States when the Smith players had departed for Lions tour commitments, reestablished him strongly among starting candidates.

At 32 years old did more than justify the coach's trust in starting him against the All Blacks, plus the club standout produced a man-of-the-match display to assist the home team to a first win against the All Blacks on home soil ending a drought dating to 2012.

The decisive instant came when Ford successfully executed two drop-goals in succession right before half-time.

This assisted England bounce back from being down 12-0 to reduce the margin to 12-11 when the half ended, before Borthwick's star-studded bench again delivered after halftime to assist the team to a convincing 33-19 triumph.

"You have to give credit to the senior players within our side, especially George," the manager commented. "In that moment as he scored those drop-goals, he controlled the match absolutely brilliantly.

"One year earlier I thought George substituted and competed exceptionally well [against New Zealand].

"One kick struck the post while he attempted a drop-goal under pressure, but he played really well.

"He's an exceptional captain, a superb performer and an even finer individual. We are fortunate to feature him in our squad."

Drop-kicks 'consistently planned'

New Zealand started quickly in the stadium, building a twelve-point advantage through scores from Fainga'anuku and Taylor.

Subsequent to Ollie Lawrence's powerful finish, Ford's back-to-back three-pointers ensured England bounced into the locker room with the momentum.

"The difficult aspect during those periods is, when the scoreboard says 12-0, we can stick to our guns and our convictions the optimal approach to compete is," Ford explained.

"We got ourselves back into contention and we recognized if we started the second half well, with substitutes entering, we were in a good position.

"Despite having a quarter-hour remaining, we were positioned on our own line after a penalty, thus we encountered obstacles in that instance too.

"In my opinion that represents Test rugby is - which team can handle with those moments superiorly."

The two attempts came within a two-minute span while the number 10 who nailed three drop-kicks in a win versus Argentina during the 2023 World Cup, showed all his international experience.

Ford hit two three-pointers for Sale during a Premiership match conducted in tough circumstances at Bath - this demonstrates a talent he has mastered thoroughly.

"It [the drop-goals] form part of our strategy," Ford continued.

"The coach is such an outstanding manager that he consistently in my ear about it, and correctly so as three points are crucial throughout the match of play."

Ford guided his team superbly across the pitch the entire match, executing intelligent kicks - both to compete and in finding space behind the visitors' backfield.

His signature tactical bomb further confused the opposing fullback, who couldn't collect.

Following his start in England's win over Australia on 1 November, Ford handed over the number 10 jersey to his replacement against Fiji a week later.

Yet the most significant examination in terms of difficulty was presented by the multiple World Cup winners, and Ford reclaimed his spot.

The national side, presently maintaining ten consecutive victories, meet Argentina in late November and curiosity remains to learn if Borthwick goes back to Fin Smith or continues with Ford.

Whatever choice occurs, Ford proved with two years remaining from a World Cup that there is plenty of rugby left for him.