If it is true that England deliberately avoided using their strongest hand, the driving maul, to test out other approaches, the most we can say is they brought a victory.
Over the past two seasons we have seen the Red Roses use all manner of game-plans, from persistent forward-domination to flowery, inventive back-play and above all a fruitful combination of the two.
Here in Whangarei they claimed two-thirds of the possession and even more of the territory, but had to be satisfied with a single try and two penalties. They were given an unwanted bonus by the sad departure through injury of Laure Sansus and Romane Ménager inside the first quarter. Hard to name two more important figures in the French line-up.
We are used to seeing England opt for a kick to the corner rather than a pot at the posts, but the tactics can hardly be said to have worked. In the 54th minute Zoe Harrison stood on the 5-metre line in front of the left-hand post and aimed for the corner. No points accrued.
In recent crunches they have readily turned to the 3-point option to ensure victory. May we assume it was deliberate policy here not to do so? Sarah Hunter was in charge of proceedings; she rarely makes a false call.
It is quite concerning that once again the backs failed to set their stamp on the occasion. They may have worked very hard and done their fair share of tackling, but we rarely saw the ball spun across the full width of the field.
It happened near the start to give Claudia MacDonald a run, but the move fizzled out.
Instead, for much of the game players drove hard at the opposition in midfield, to be met by thunderous tackles. Here, Gabrielle Vernier’s thumping of Ellie Kildunne stood out; a penalty was awarded against her, but no card was flourished.
Keeping the Bench warm
So close was the game that Middleton left three players on the bench: Connie Powell, Lucy Packer and Holly Aitchison. That is three more than usual.
Leaving Packer unemployed makes Mo Hunt’s exclusion from the party all the more inexplicable, even inexcusable. In my view Leanne Infante is one of the Undroppables, and thoroughly deserves to be kept at the battle-front for as long as possible. Given the current shortage of wings (and her own fine form) MacDonald wasn’t switched to No 9. But if (when!) Infante suffers a knock?
Would Middleton have left Hunt warming the bench at the end of a close encounter like this?
The staff will want Lark Davies restored to full fitness as soon as possible. Amy Cokayne is another you can trust to go the full 80 minutes, but it’s a long, hard pull on reserve energy. On 68 minutes England lost their first line-out on their own throw.
The Best-laid Plans
We have to assume that England stuck largely to those pre-match plans, but the emphasis on forward domination left the game far tighter than they or their supporters would have wished.
French commentators queried the Red Roses neglect of overlaps out wide as they stuck to tighter options.
We were treated to a five-set aerial-tennis match, which was a sign that neither side wanted to, or felt able to indulge in a handling game. Even when England built a sound position through forward drives, the backs were in no position to spread the ball through the hands.
It made a stark contrast not merely with the previous Fiji game, but most of their recent outings. Middleton’s comments post-match revealed his concern. Why were the backs so unwilling to take the weight off the forwards?
When Emily Scarratt did finally attempt a run down the right flank, her off-load to Helena Rowland didn’t go to hand, and the No 12 was bounced unceremoniously into touch.
England’s raggedness was demonstrated when two incidents turned into shoving matches; first Cokayne, then Hannah Botterman had to be pulled away by team-mates.
French fallibilities played their part too. After several phases, les Bleues pulled English alignments out of shape, as had happened in the Fiji game. The ball ripped left down the line only for Marine Ménager to drop a pass when apparently set for a huge break.
The game finished with a 6-point advantage to the English. And if Sansus and Romane Ménager had survived?
I mentioned recently a possible parallel with the 2014 RWC, when Canada drew with England before bowing to them in the final. There is nearly a month to go before the date of the ninth final; a lot can happen in the meantime. This game comes as a timely reminder to the Red Roses and their supporters that a long winding road lies ahead.
