Has Eddie given England their edge back

Eddie Jones’ first Elite Player Squad as England head coach has been digested and discussed over the past couple of weeks, but amid all the excitement over the new faces and potentially high ceiling of the squad, one question boils beneath the surface – have England got their edge back?

Over the years, England have fielded their fair share of teams which have lacked ability but even at their lowest ebb, they have still been a side with plenty of physical edge. The intimidation factor that those sides carried with them often went a long way to bridging any technical deficiencies they may have had.

No one – not least so Eddie Jones – should be advocating that England build a playground bully over the next cycle, especially with all of England’s northern hemisphere rivals looking to ‘upskill’ and get to the level of New Zealand and Australia.

That said, there is a lot to be gained by fielding a team which plays the game a little closer to the edge than was seen under Stuart Lancaster's tenure, especially when the majority of those players are also technically proficient and capable of playing a skilful brand of rugby. Lancaster did a lot of beneficial work during his stint with England - work which needs to be remembered and built upon, not scrapped and forgotten – but the critique that England may have become a little too ‘nice’ during that time has merit.

There are countless examples of the top test teams in the world picking players who have a dark side to their game, often at the expense of more skilled individuals, because it brings a balance and ruthlessness to their side that is needed to win regularly at the highest level.

Eben Etzebeth is one of the best examples. Over the last season or two the Springboks have had more skilful locks (Victor Matfield, Lood de Jager and Pieter-Steph du Toit), but the giant Capetonian has been one of the first names on South Africa’s team sheet for his unfashionable but effective tangible traits. Argentina are no stranger to fielding players bordering on loose cannon status, with Tomás Lavanini currently the chief disrupter for Los Pumas, while there are plenty of examples from New Zealand and Australia, including vaunted players such as Jerome Kaino and Scott Fardy.

Lancaster was unfortunate that Manu Tuilagi and Dylan Hartley, two players who frequently tread the line between legal and illegal on the rugby pitch, were both unavailable to him at the Rugby World Cup, whilst Courtney Lawes was ruled out mid-tournament with a knee injury.

All three have been named in the EPS, with Hartley named as England’s new captain, and are joined by particularly physical forwards Paul Hill and Maro Itoje. The unique skill sets of Tuilagi, Lawes and Hartley are well-known, but these two youngsters bring plenty of edge to the mix themselves and should help England re-establish themselves as a force at the very top tier of international rugby.

Itoje and Hill toy with that line of what’s legal quite successfully and it brings clear advantages on the pitch.

If you watch Itoje lining players up for a tackle, he often comes very close to being pinged for using a swinging arm. He brings the arm around as late as possible, usually wrapping it as close to the ball as he can. This serves the dual-purpose of preventing the ball-carrier from offloading and attempting to dislodge the ball and cause a knock-on. By bringing his arm in as late and quickly as possible, Itoje creates a significant impact when he tackles a player. The lock’s athleticism, particularly his acceleration, also makes him a brutal force on the clear-out, where power (speed plus strength), not strength, reigns.

Like Itoje, Hill plays with plenty of power at the breakdown and with ball in hand, but it’s his edge at the scrum which should have Jones and his coaching team salivating. The tighthead, who is remarkably still just 20 years of age, knows how to turn the screw on opposition looseheads and hookers. Hill keeps his feet underneath him, has a quick and strong bind and scrummages at a height which can see him get up and underneath his opposite number. Dan Cole is a very honest, straight scrummager and Hill is built from the same mould, but the youngster is already adept at finding chinks in the loosehead-hooker bind and exploiting them with a subtle angle.

Jones wants to re-establish England as one of the dominant packs and set-pieces in world rugby as part of his bid to take them to the very top and having players who can combine their skill with - for want of a better word - physical ferocity, are worth their considerable weight in gold.

Lancaster’s goal of instilling a new culture into the England team was a praiseworthy one. There were no hints of arrogance or entitlement amongst his squads, but with those traits expunged, so seemed England’s appetite for the darker side of the game.

The naming of Hartley as captain speaks to a different mind-set under Jones. The hooker, who was seen by many as far from an automatic selection given the sterling form of Jamie George, has an unquestionable will to win. Accompanied by Lawes, Tuilagi and physical specimens like Itoje and Hill, England look ready to win back their reputation as not only one of the hardest teams to play, but also one of the most unpleasant.

If Lancaster was the idealist pointing English rugby in the right direction, Jones looks to be the pragmatist capable of seeing them arrive at their destination.