Sir Clive Woodward strikes again

[Akkerman]

https://www.rugbypass.com/news/8-months ... eparations

“So they win this game and they play really well, there is no doubt about it. They beat the All Blacks and no one can say they didn’t deserve to win. Then the following week, being there was the most frustrating week ever because you just felt it was completely different. Everyone in the media, apart from me, was saying England by 20, 30 points because South Africa beat Wales in the semi-final and Wales could and should have won that game – South Africa played really poorly,” continued Woodward.

“So you have this crisis situation – you look at the South Africans on paper and you go, ‘Wow, this is a serious team’. Of course, everyone is building up England and they didn’t help themselves. They just seemed to get distracted, it just wasn’t the same.

“I was with Martin and Lawrence and we were going, ‘This is going to be close, this is going to be more than close’. In fact, I thought South Africa were going to win because it was a complete reversal from the semi-final. I just saw distractions everywhere,” explained Woodward, who visited the England camp two days before the final.

“I don’t normally go to the press conferences despite the fact that I was working over there for the Mail and ITV. But I went to this press conference because I was interviewing Eddie Jones after the main press conference. Eddie and Owen were there and it was the Thursday afternoon, two days before the biggest day of your life, and they were okay. It wasn’t quite as sharp and edgy, there was a bit too much humour for me.

“But then they left and half the press conference left with them. Then they sent up two players. I stayed in the room. I was at the back with my baseball cap on, so no one knew I was there. The two players were Dan Cole and Joe Marler, two guys on the bench, two front rowers.

“Honestly, I sat there and it was like Laurel and Hardy. I’m just going, I know they are on the bench but this is 48 hours from the World Cup final. It was to me poor and that is me being polite. It was really poor.

“As history turned out, these two players would have a huge, huge role in the game with (Kyle) Sinckler going off so early. So Cole is on really, really early. Marler comes on as they take off Mako Vunipola.

“South African journalists who I knew well came up to me after the press conference after these two had finished larking around after 20 minutes – it wasn’t larking around it was embarrassing – and they said, ‘Well if that is the mood in the England camp we have got half a chance’. That just said everything to me.

“I just think they got complacent. Looking at stuff at social media, a lot of guests arriving in the camp from celebrities… to Australian people. They got it wrong. I have exchanged curt texts with Eddie since because he has heard what I have been saying. They got it wrong.”

Thinking back to how his England got their preparations correct 17 years ago, Woodward reflected: “I just remember back in 2003 after we beat France in the semi-final sitting every player down and saying, ‘Guys, just give me one week. There is going to be distractions everywhere, from family to friends to media to sponsors, just don’t get involved. Win the World Cup. Do what the hell you like next Sunday, just win the World Cup, just give me one week’. We went mad on not getting distracted by anybody.

“I just think (this) England got distracted, right down to the blinkin’ team didn’t arrive on time. I’m on the pitchside. We normally position our cameras so we are behind the England warm-up and we are well into the programme and I have got the ITV producer in my headphones going, ‘Where are the England team?’

“Don’t ask me, I’m on the touchline. I haven’t got a clue where they are because they weren’t there and they arrived late, literally half an hour late for the World Cup final. It’s a meticulous, military operation that preparation, so to arrive 30 minutes later for the World Cup final, again it said the heads just weren’t quite there.

“I’m glad Eddie is staying on, I’m glad he has got a chance to resurrect it because he will learn a huge amount of lessons from that week but gee, they got it wrong. England could have won. In my view, they were the best team, had the best players. From 1 to 15 that team should have put away South Africa but they got badly distracted and they didn’t just lose, they got blown away.

“And there has never been a report back from Twickenham. I have been asking various people where is your report, I want to know what happened, where is your debrief on what happened in the biggest game of your lives, you didn’t fire a shot? But everyone seems to have just moved on quickly and forgot about it.

[Sandstorm]

He’s such a douche

[JM2K6]

Same bollocks that some boredies came out with. I guess they all missed the Cole and Marler show when we were battering teams.

Also Cole getting butchered after being forced on after 10 minutes or whatever was no surprise, and Marler turned things around when he came on, so I can't see how their press conference was indicative of anything.

Sometimes you just gotta admit that when your gameplan revolves around getting physical dominance, you sometimes run into a team that can do the same to you and it all goes horribly wrong. SA have been real bastards for England to play against, including that ridiculously jammy win we had over them the previous time we played them.

[Line6 HXFX]

So Englamd should have won, because Wales nearly beat South Africa, and England are (in English supporters and the medias minds,) far superior to Wales (Wales were on a 19 match winning streak going into the World cup). This in itself a f'king shockingly arrogant statement, but to then say South Africa played badly against Wales (so Wales comin close was nothing to do with Wales, and down to South African ineptitude) and SA won anyway, is just the icing on the shit sandwich.

I am not sure if you English lot see this stuff, or are just so far down the English supremacist rabbit hole, you zone it all out, but is such shitty one eye'd blinkered nonsense good for the sport?
What culture is it creating?

Carry down this road anď fore long who knows, we will vote to leave the EU, elect Boris as Primeminister, and have English nationalists like Anne Widdecombe insisting on mask free days in supermarkets.

[Glaston]

19 match winning streak going into the RWC 2019 ?

When did this happen?





In reality
33 -19 loss in Aug 2019 that ended the 14 match streak


Oh and I forgot the 2 games Wales lost to Ireland in Aug/Sept

[tc27]

I dunno the Wales/SA game was objectively bad IMO which is not to say they are bad sides.

When some of the players involved with England from that final retire we may get some more insight as to why they flopped in the final and I do think there was something wrong mentally. (but its also true SA's strengths are naturally good against the kind of game England tried to play).

In my playing career I have being involved in games were my team fails to fire a shot despite being in good form and playing well the week before - it was always I thought the snowball of lots of factors being 'off' before the game like the more extroverted guys being quieter than normal, a warm up not having any buzz, turning up late and incoherently and then perhaps something happening early in the game (injury to a important player for example).

[Rhubarb & Custard]

SA were very well set up to reject the physical approach England rely on, I think they'd be favourites if the same sides were to play again next weekend. And SA had basically rested the previous 2 weeks whilst England were in two high paced and physical games. Wales could have presented much more of a threat to SA, but the only risk to both teams in that semi-final was a sore neck watching the ball being kicked back and forth.

As ever with Clive there are a few little bits and pieces you might want to consider in what he's saying, whilst throwing 90% into the pile of dribble.

[JM2K6]

So Englamd should have won, because Wales nearly beat South Africa, and England are (in English supporters and the medias minds,) far superior to Wales (Wales were on a 19 match winning streak going into the World cup). This in itself a f'king shockingly arrogant statement, but to then say South Africa played badly against Wales (so Wales comin close was nothing to do with Wales, and down to South African ineptitude) and SA won anyway, is just the icing on the shit sandwich.

I am not sure if you English lot see this stuff, or are just so far down the English supremacist rabbit hole, you zone it all out, but is such shitty one eye'd blinkered nonsense good for the sport?
What culture is it creating?

Carry down this road anď fore long who knows, we will vote to leave the EU, elect Boris as Primeminister, and have English nationalists like Anne Widdecombe insisting on mask free days in supermarkets.

Hey you know the only English person to reply before you outright criticised Woodward and acknowledged the realities of the South Africans being better at doing what England were doing, right

[sockwithaticket]

Our record is terrible against South Africa in the last decade or so. For some reason we seem to think we can physically bully them despite plenty of evidence to the contrary. On occassion we gain parity or supremacy (Eddie's first game against them while they were still in their shit period before the recent resurgence), but for the most part it's running into a brick wall and getting nowhere fast. While a certain amount of bludgeon is required in any rugby game, that alone is insufficient to take on the Saffa's and it feels like where we come unstuck more often than not.

I think the margin of victory was possibly down to the mentality not being right, but that final was a game South Africa win against England 8/10.

Woodward's a cunt labouring under the misapprehension he's still relevant to modern day rugby. No wonder Eddie's exchanged "curt texts" with him. 'Clive, m8. You haven't coached rugby in 15 years, faaaaaark off.'

[Yeeb]

Woodward is a nob, but not much to disagree with in that article - being happy and jokey beforehand is a great team boost to the opposition, and little things like rocking up late does seem to show that planning wasn’t great in that last week.

There was always a great fear from real English fans (ie not the media) that England couldn’t maintain the effort from beating NZ.

[Plato’sCave]

Bless

[Lemoentjie]

Seems like a reasonable and well balanced article. The arrogance coming from Mud Island was sickening.

It's easy to forget that England weren't just beaten in the final, they were completely humiliated and pounded on every level. A real shock compared to how well they performed the previous week.