England face 'Total Rugby' test

England face the All Blacks on the 8th November, the Springboks on the 15th and Australia on the 29th, all at 2.30pm at fortress Twickenham and they are going to need to be at their very best if they are to put down a marker for next year’s Rugby World Cup.

England is the only team in the northern hemisphere who are realistically worthy of a favourite’s tag in next year’s World Cup. England are the only northern hemisphere team that can match the pace, power and precision of the south. England are however, going to need to evolve their game if they are to compete with the Springboks and the All Blacks next year, this is how:

Accuracy

Accuracy is going to be critical heading into next year’s Rugby World Cup. New Zealand have set the benchmark in terms of skill, power and precision and it is hardly a wonder that they are one of the most successful sports teams of all time.

England, like the Springboks, rely on a good set piece, which needs to be a non-negotiable when they meet the All Blacks. England will also need to focus on keeping hold of possession for long
periods and building an attack.

England have the ability to attack and create space against the very best teams in the world, but are going to have to be patient, accurate and definitive in everything they do.

Fitness

New Zealand once again exposed the Boks' frailties and lack of fitness in the last 20 minutes during their last fixture, which the Boks won 27-25 at Ellis Park in Johannesburg. The Springboks had improved their fitness tremendously and still were way off the levels of fitness that New Zealand maintain.

England will need to show that they are both willing and fit enough to play for 85 minutes against South Africa and particularly New Zealand. England have too often been neck and neck with the All
Blacks at half time, only be blown away in the second half. The speed of the game is increasing all the time and if England have not already realised and addressed this, they will be in for their usual defeat against the All Blacks.

Integration

England need to play traditional style English rugby to be successful. England need to use their heavy ball carriers to bash over the gain line, however they will need to integrate more speed and skill into their game.

Northern hemisphere teams do not seem to have the game plan or skill to break down southern hemisphere defences except for England. England play with superb width in their attack, however often fail to turn dominant phase play into points.

England will need to be smarter and more creative once they get past third phase possession. England too often kick ball away as soon they begin to put teams under pressure, leaving Dagg, Folau and Le Roux with easy cleaning up.

England need to keep using their big hard runners to smash over the gain line, until the opportunity arises to for the backs to spread the ball wider. Perhaps England may choose to learn from Argentina, who have developed wicked attack play in under a year.

Defence

England are going to have to front up against New Zealand, South Africa and Australia. There is no place to hide against the southern hemisphere teams, and any defensive frailties will be brutally exposed.

England are going to have to show a lot of guts and determination to hold out players with real ball skills from the south. England are also going to have to contest the breakdowns strongly, particularly against New Zealand.

England will not be able to negotiate several multi?phase attacks from either New Zealand or South Africa and will need to limit quick ball and/or create turnovers. If England can contest the breakdown, and show a lot of patience and heart on defence, they may just be able to hold out and grab a win or three against the southern teams.

Once again, I head into the Autumn Internationals with cautious optimism.

How do you think England will go against New Zealand next week? Leave us a comment below.