16 September 2007

Replacing Noon and the fly-half conundrum

With Jamie Noon out of the competition, England have what could be the last chance to inject some creativity into their squad. Noon never lets anyone down, and is a tough competitor, but I have always had doubts about his quality, and with four other centres in the squad, there is a chance to redress the balance, espeically in light of the fly-half situation. Wilkinson and Barkley may be nearing fitness, but it would not be a huge surprise if either got injured again, so I hope that Toby Flood gets a call-up. He looked comfortable on the international stage during the Six Nations, and was willing to try things, and some youth would be a welcome addition to the squad.
As for the fly-half position, it was never Mike Catt's best position, and he has not played a test there since 1999, but I was disappointed by his lack of imagination during the South Africa game. He was probably following orders, but the number of times he opted to crash it up himself, or use Farrell, was woefully lacking in imagination. He should not be the scapegoat, but if Wilkinson and Barkley are back for the next game, I would bring them both in at 10 and 12, with instructions that if plan a fails, to back themselves to try something different for plan b. Goodness knows England need to do something to salavge some pride. At least Samoa's defeat today has made progression to the quarter-finals more likely, though maybe it would be better if the side could just hurry up and go home.

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