With the Autumn Internationals looming, Martin Johnson is about to start, in earnest, his reign as England team manager. As the most respected man in English (if not all) rugby his appointment was received with glee and delight. However, the time between his appointment and his upcoming first test match, has been uniquely long and a lot has happened in between. What have Johnno’s actions so far told us about the make-up of his first England side in two weeks time?
Leicester-biased
Upon being appointed, Johnno’s first action was to confirm that John Wells, as forwards coach, would be staying on under his regime. This was surprising considering that Wells had overseen the most woeful period of English rugby in the last twenty-five years. However considering Wells’ Leicester pedigree - a former captain (Johnson played under him) and coach - Johnson’s retention of Wells suggested a Leicester slant towards future selections.
Injuries have had an impact, but the fact that Leicester players made up almost a third of Johnno’s first elite squad (9 out of 30), after only two Tigers had been two picked for the NZ tour, does little to dampen suspicions that Johnno may become increasingly Leicester-centric.
Experience cast aside
The other trend suggested by Johnson’s selections was a keen willingness to discard very experienced players based on very short trial periods under his regime. The omission of Mike Tindall from the elite squad is a case in point. A World Cup winner under Johnson, Andy Robinson’s ‘heartbeat’ of the 2005/06 England side and the skipper and totem of Gloucester, many felt that Tindall would be Johnson’s captain. His non-selection in the 30-strong elite squad can only be put down to Johnson’s bitter disappointment at his two underwhelming performances in NZ. A similar argument could be made for such players as Charlie Hodgson, Nick Easter, Ben Kay and Joe Worsley.
Character and balls
Johnson the player was one who embodied strength of character. He had a merciless desperation to win, he could calculate cold-bloodedly how to do it and he had the balls and ability to pull it off. It seems to me that Johnson‘s apparent volatility of selection is down to him wasting no time in discarding players he reckons just haven’t got the balls to cope with international rugby. It seems, as far as Johnson’s concerned, experience can go hang if you haven’t got the mental daring to take a rugby match by the scrotum.
Johnson’s selection criteria
For these reasons I reckon that Johnson’s selection criteria for the Autumn will be the following:
1. Firstly and most obviously the player must be or have the potential to be world class.
2. The player must have revealed character during the New Zealand tour or repeatedly for his club.
3. Age or experience does not matter a jot.
4. It would not hurt if he earns his corn playing at Welford Road.
Johnson’s 1st XV?
Following that criteria I reckon Johnno’s Autumnal first-choice team will, injury permitting, be the following:
1. Andrew Sheridan (Sale) 2. Dylan Hartley (Northampton) 3. Matt Stevens (Bath) 4. Steve Borthwick (Saracens) 5. Nick Kennedy (London Irish) 6. James Haskell (Wasps) 7. Tom Rees (Wasps) 8. Jordan Crane (Leicester) 9. Harry Ellis (Leicester) 10. Jonny Wilkinson (Newcastle) 11. Paul Sackey (Wasps) 12. Ricky Flutey (Wasps) 13. Dan Hipkiss (Leicester) 14. James Simpson-Daniel (Gloucester) 15. Josh Lewsey (Wasps)