England's George Ford ready for the Samoan barrage heading his way
Samoa may not be quite the same side as they were when Ford debuted against them three years ago, but their sheer physicality remains as frightening as ever
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Your support makes all the difference.If George Ford walks off the Twickenham pitch on Saturday in one piece and with his wits still about him, he will breathe an almighty sigh of relief. For international fly-halves, there is not much more daunting than playing Samoa.
“I made my first start against Samoa in one autumn and got done a couple of times then,” recalls Ford. The year was 2014, Dylan Hartley was among the replacements – the last time he was left out of the starting line-up when available – as Stuart Lancaster deployed an experimental squad that delivered an impressive victory ahead of the Rugby World Cup.
The similarities to this weekend’s encounter are uncanny, with the only difference being that there are two years to go until the next global gathering, not one. And while Samoa may not be quite the same side as they were three years ago, but their sheer physicality remains as frightening as ever.
“It was greasy as well,” continued Ford. “The catch-pass stuff was slowed down by half a second and it gives them the opportunity to make their hits. It’s got the potential to be wet again at the weekend so we’re going to have to be smart.”
He adds: “We spoke about that this week, our skills have got to be on the money, our catch-pass stuff because if not they’ll just come for you, flying off the line and wanting to hurt you. Our basics have got to be brilliant.
The problem for anyone facing one of the Pacific Islands is that, like buses, one big hit usually precedes another. It’s something that the Samoans feed off, and the sight of a bone-crunching tackle is enough to make 82,000 people inside Twickenham wince as one. For many that have been on the receiving end, they have compared it to a car crash.
“Touch wood I’ve never been in a car crash but I can imagine it’s as close to one as you can come,” Ford said. “They get their energy from doing something like that and they’re very good at it, it’s no coincidence that they’ve done it on numerous occasions. I’m sure they’ll come out this weekend and they might get one or two but it’s our job to make sure they don’t get too many by being smart.”
It will be warming to England supporters to hear that the squad have been preparing for that this week, particularly when it comes to Ford and the two inexperienced centres outside him, Alex Lozowski and Henry Slade, who have just 12 caps between them. “The coaches manipulate training as such that we do prepare for it,” he said. “Of course it is never the same as a game but the defence we have been attacking against this week has been Samoa like – it has been random, it has been unpredictable, it has been guys flying out of the line – so you can prepare for it in terms of that.
“But you never know when it going to come in the game at the weekend. On the other side of the ball the guys running against the starting team have attacked like Samoa as well. Whether that is picking up through the middle of the ruck and physically dominating around the ruck or giving the big centres the time to carry the ball. We do train for it and prepare for it.”
England not only have to match that ferocity, but they have been challenged by head coach Eddie Jones to “physically dominate the Samoans. That’s easier said than done, especially when the team arrives in London emotionally fuelled by the financial problems surrounding the Samoan Rugby Union and the ongoing dispute with World Rugby that could see the players refused their £600 match fees because there simply isn’t enough money in the SRU coffers to go around.
As has been the case in the past, England have relied on out-smarting Samoa by letting them tire themselves out before taking control in the second half. But Jones want England to seize the initiative from the very start and negate any chance of Saturday’s opponents building up a head of steam, and Ford believes that the understrength team that has been selected is still capable of doing exactly that.
“Definitely, especially when they’ve got the ball they get their go-forward by winning the collisions, carrying through their big back-rowers, big centres so we can’t shy away from that,” he added. “We’ve got to match that and better it because that’s how we’ll get our ascendancy in the game. If they get their tails up it turns into a very tight game for us.”
England’s section certainly gives Samoa a fighting chance, and it’s normally one they relish at Twickenham even if they have never beaten the Red Rose. What will matter most to the Pacific Islanders is that they do themselves justice on the biggest stage and provide a timely reminder of their importance to the world game, and if they leave a few bodies lying their wake while doing so, then that will be the icing on the cake.
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