On the eve of the Old Mutual Wealth Series 2017 Autumn Series guest writer, Bruce Perkins, gives his verdict on the performances of our Red Roses so far in 2017.
Verdicts – ‘Not guilty, m’lud’
One thing I can’t stand about modern practice on the sports pages is the delight in offering marks out of ten for every player. Those the journo has failed to notice get a 5; the star gets 9; the rest 6, 7 or 8. A 6 will be combined with the comment ‘exceptional play throughout, but dropped a pass’; a 9 will overlook a card that endangered the team’s well-being. And no two papers can agree on a single verdict.
The comments that follow are unnumbered and attempt the impossible: to summarise the qualities of every player objectively; a self-deluding task, but scribes should undergo hard labour nearly as painful as that suffered by the players they praise or castigate.
Sarah Hunter (captain): Ever the reliable linchpin of the pack. She reads the game exceptionally well, dropping back in defence in the classic mode of the 8 to help the back three and start counters – as she did brilliantly at the start of the Rotorua game. One doubt: as she breaks from the back of the scrum, she only occasionally moves the ball on through the hands; one would like to see that more often. But her retrieving of the ball from a retreating scrum is remarkable. She nearly led her troops to the top of the mountain; they played magnificent rugby in the process.
Zoe Aldcroft: she was a surprise addition to the ranks for the Big One, but the selectors had been watching her closely at U20 level. She may well blossom into a major figure at the heart of the Roses pack; she has the physique to step into the boots of either Hunter (her preferred position) or Taylor, to partner Scott in a powerful second row. She was allowed two run-outs at the start of the Irish campaign; her experience there may well enable her to become a first choice in the near future.
Sarah Bern: one of the undoubted triumphs of the year, ridiculously young, ridiculously gifted. We have to wonder why her coaches didn’t encourage her to switch from back to front row years ago. It took Matt Ferguson’s persuasive powers to change her mind, and he was repaid in bucket-loads of achievement. She had her golden 80 minutes in the semi-final, where her non-stop efforts made a critical difference to the result.
Rachael Burford: she helped prove me embarrassingly wrong as I projected likely XVs. The management knew better than me that this is a pearl among centres, gifted with exceptional reactions and possibly the best hands in the business. The contrast between her and her centre partner Scarratt made for an excellent balance in midfield. The cross-kick she aimed for McKenna in the Australia game underlined the speed of her vision and technical skills. She was determination personified.
Rochelle Clark: the most revered figure in women’s rugby. The NZ TV commentators at the Rotorua game spoke of her with a respect rarely heard on Kiwi lips about a Pom, least of all a Rugby player. Sadly, the span from that tour to the WC marked the end of her primacy as England’s number one No 1. By the decisive stages of the WC, she had been supplanted by Vickii Cornborough. She is now plying her trade with Wasps and continues to pass on her wealth of experience there and back home in Bucks.
Poppy Cleall: she will have been delighted to get a late call-up to the Irish show. Inevitably, she had to fill in as and when necessary, even playing prop against Italy. But she has the chance in the Tyrrells to convince selectors that she is indeed worth a permanent place in the pack, though her final position remains uncertain – anywhere in the back five would no doubt suit her fine; even better with her sister alongside her.
Amy Cokayne: she thoroughly deserved her ascension to first-choice No 2 ahead of Fleetwood. Every aspect of her game was in fine working order, from the throw-in to pacey breaks through midfield and try-scoring at the back of an unstoppable drive. Her father has coached her well! England were lucky to have two such outstanding exponents of that position.
Vickii Cornborough: she had the awkward distinction of finally wrenching away Rocky Clark’s right to the No 1 jersey. But she deserved it, matching a sound performance in the tight with a contribution in the loose that Clark finds increasingly difficult to maintain. With her two young colleagues beside her, she provided one of the most powerful front rows in the business.
Vicky Fleetwood: a classic case of a player suffering through the very strength of the squad. The starting hooker in the Paris final, here she had to wait her turn behind Cokayne. A natural athlete who exudes strength and commitment, she makes an immediate impact coming off the bench. With her first touch of the ball, the game seems to jump into fast-forward. Add to that great accuracy at the line-out and good handling skills. Another to suffer an ill-timed injury, but at least she could make a belated appearance in Belfast, unlike Emily Scott.
Natasha Hunt: an outstanding servant of the English cause. Courageous, resourceful and dependable, she is one of the heartbeats of the team. Her one weakness is the shuffle pass, strangely enough, only off her right hand. According to some of her forwards, the real boss. In her representative role she consistently shows the Roses’ campaign in its best light.
Megan Jones: the ‘English’ girl born in Cardiff, whom her team-mates were delighted to call their own, displayed skills of the highest order in the first game of the International Series. Her agility makes her hard to pin down, ball in hand. Centres with an eye for the gap and the ability to get through it are pearls beyond price, and she has them. Her try against Spain seemed to come before the referee had blown the kick-off whistle, and set the Red Roses’ boat bobbing gaily along. It helps that she tackles like her flankers, low and merciless.
Heather Kerr: she deserved her place in the two big tournaments, despite missing out completely on the 6N. Her playing experience was limited, as she had taken the game up very late. But excellent scouting ensured she flew out to NZ and continued on to Ireland. Inevitably, she had to take her place at the back of the props queue, but such is the pressure on forwards at a WC that her input was vital, especially when debuting at hooker.
Justine Lucas: she had a nasty experience in the Italy 6N game, when she couldn’t find her optimal position at tight-head and got lifted several times. When she was removed at half-time, you feared for her future. To her huge credit, she came back strongly, helped, no doubt, by some expert coaching from Matt Ferguson. It’s now in her hands whether she can claim a starting role in the front row; the competition will be hot. She played a full part in the Roses’ run to Belfast.
La Toya Mason: a real-live Kiwi dressed in white; so devoted to the cause that she has notched over 60 caps for her adoptive nation. A perceived weakness in the past was that she could go AWOL at rucks – visions of Clark acting as dummy half. But this rarely happened when it mattered. Lacking in the last ounce of pace, she had to wait her turn while others led the way. Her pass is invariably accurate and she has an eye for the raking kick.
Alex Matthews: strangers to the game might well wonder what this English Rose was doing trotting out alongside the mighty figures of Packer, Clark, Bern and others. Then they saw her play and were astonished. She was instantly transformed into a charging bull, driving metres at a time off the sides of rucks and causing chasms to open up in the opposition defence. Her tackling was unremitting. The selectors had spotted her talent when she was barely out of her cot, and she figured in the 2014 final at the age of 21. Now she is moving into a youthful maturity which gives great hopes for an even better future – both in 7s and 15s.
Katy Mclean: She wasn’t nominated best fly-half for the Dream Team, but one has to wonder why. Whenever she was on the field, England seemed to be in charge – we have to omit that horrible second half in the final, but everyone was off kilter then – her kicking out of hand was almost faultless. One punt did slice into touch – her pals smiled in disbelief. She was a constant threat to the opposition, able to send long, flat passes cross-field, put searching kicks into untenanted parts of the field, or, best of all, surprise everyone by darting through herself, as the defence hesitated, expecting a different play.
Harriet Millar-Mills: she had another outstanding 6N series, but then found regular selection difficult. The only explanation is that the pack contained such powerful players in her preferred positions, that is, anywhere in the back 5. Even so, I can’t help thinking she should have been introduced earlier in the most crucial battles. Her all-round skills are of the highest order.
Izzy Noel-Smith: an outstanding back-row who suffered the fate of other members of this supremely talented squad. However well she played, there was always someone else nudging ahead of her in the batting order – in this case the pair of Matthews and Packer. She worked tirelessly in the loose and helped to maintain the momentum when she was allowed to show her paces. Her try at the end of the final demonstrated her unremitting approach.
Marlie Packer: I have neglected to mention her far too often. In many respects, she was the fulcrum of the team, constantly driving herself and her mates forward with ferocious enthusiasm. She warmed the hearts of the New Zealanders who saw in her just the sort of back-row player they most admire in their own kind. If we have to nit-pick: she does enjoy a double-roll on the floor, which referees are increasingly disliking. Mel Robinson, the New Zealand commentator and ex-Fern, was heard to exclaim: ‘Marlie Packer, you beaut! Lovely!’ – as she slammed into yet another opponent like a battering ram. Her partnership with Matthews was a joy to behold for all connoisseurs of back row destruction.
Amber Reed: Majestic is the only way to describe her play. She had been my first choice to partner Scarratt in the middle of the field, but somehow things didn’t quite work out for her, and she lost her starting position to the ever-reliable Burford. She is calm, unflustered and blessed with a wide range of skills. Some of her passing was of exceptional quality.
Leanne Riley: the one player I felt was greatly undervalued. Of the three No 9s available on the two visits abroad, her pass seemed the quickest and longest. She sets herself in the optimum position behind scrum and ruck to use a wide firm base for her pass. She has a sharp eye for the gap and matched Hunt in this respect. She put in some useful tactical kicks. Purely on current form, I thought she deserved to start both the knock-out games, but the bosses went for experience. She has committed herself to the 15s game so may yet claim that No 9 shirt.
Emily Scarratt: a rugby player extraordinaire. If there is a better all-round female player in the world, I don’t know who that can be. She is the coach’s dream; the player who can do everything: kick off, catch the kick-off, pass expertly, punt vast distances, tackle and jackal, break through the hardest defences, spot a gap, accelerate, score tries by the dozen and convert them. Not even Woodman can do all that. Her temperament is remarkable. Like the greatest players in all sports, she appears to have so much time to make her decisions, while the rest of us scrabble around.
Abbie Scott: one of the major stars of the show. She was laid up so long with a knee injury that she must have wondered whether she’d make it back. She did, triumphantly. To my mind, she was the Player of the Tournament down under, combining ruthless efficiency in her primary role with game-winning contributions in the open. Quins’ gain is Keswick’s loss.
Emily Scott: hard to distinguish between degrees of hard luck when it comes to injuries, but she seemed to have one foot on the plane when misfortune intervened. She had shown delightful touches down under, playing a near-immaculate game at full-back, then switching to her No 1 position of fly-half. Though she hasn’t the physical toughness of a Mclean, she lacks for nothing in her kicking, passing, tackling and speed over the ground. She has a perceptive eye for the possible, an invaluable asset for any team. Her recall to the colours right at the end of the campaign left her as water-girl. Very sad.
Tamara Taylor: it’s instructive watching the pack gather before a line-out or during a break. As likely as not, they will all be listening in reverential silence to the tall pale figure who looks more like a kindly headmistress. As with some other distinguished players, she doesn’t look the least bit sporty till she’s on the field. Then, even into her mid-thirties, she shows the attributes of the true athlete; she is the mistress of the line-out, calling as well as catching. In any photo of a breakdown she is likely to be hovering close by, looking for the chance to advance the attack. Her fourth try for the Roses in Dublin was a moment to treasure.
Lydia Thompson: after the disappointment of missing most of the 2014 WC, she turned on show-stopping performances in all three major tournaments of 2017, the 6N, the International Series and the Irish WC. She remained at her best in the Belfast final, scoring two tries of the highest possible quality. Unlike most wingers, she is happy to deceive the opposition by coming to a complete stop, then disappearing out of view again in a puff of smoke. Her nomination for World Rugby Player of the Year is testament to her achievements. Let’s also hope she can be equally effective in the 7s campaigns.
Danielle Waterman: we may remember her outstanding year for the Roses mainly for the sad, abrupt end it took in the French match. She reeled away from a contact close to the side-line. There and then we knew her chance of another final was over. Her pace, agility, footwork and aggression remain untouched by the passing years. She retains the ability to cut down backs who look bound to go over in the corner. She scored and helped set up magical tries.
Amy Wilson Hardy: there’s a great art in knowing when to get injured. All rugby players have experienced the frustration of an ill-timed derailment. At the WC, Amy Wilson Hardy returned to the fold late, anxious to make up for lost time, but the ball didn’t often run her way. She had scored an early hat-trick in the 6N, displaying pace and elusiveness, but lost her place to Wilson before the campaign was over. She has time on her side, and with Wilson now out of the reckoning, can hope to gain a hat-stand more caps. But for her, 7s come first.
Kay Wilson: we leave the Golden Girl to last for obvious reasons. She has had an outstanding career, representing her country at both 7s and 15s from the tender age of 20. Rugby players blessed with pace soon learn that that alone is nowhere near enough to reach the top. She had handling and kicking skills, plus a taste for physical contact that is hard to find in a single player. Her decision to quit at the age of 26 caused much bemusement, but she has explained her reasoning lucidly. Her many friends and admirers can only dream of her returning to the game – perhaps at the age of 40 – when she may run at a pace slightly closer to that of mere mortals. Happily, modern technology allows us to revisit her many achievements on-screen. A modest, magical presence on the field.
