Under-fire Johnson gets backing from Woodward

FORMER England boss Clive Woodward is unimpressed with the current state of the game in the country, but has lent his full support to under-fire coach Martin Johnson.

The 2003 World Cup champions were crushed 42-6 by South Africa at Twickenham on Saturday, a performance the 52-year-old described as “humiliating” to watch.

Speaking on the opening day of Soccerex 08 in Johannesburg yesterday, Woodward said: “I think the South Africans probably knew more what they were doing than the English did.

“Obviously it was a hugely disappointing game. From an English perspective, I never thought I’d see the day where any team would come to Twickenham and win by 40 points.

“I do think these things don’t happen by chance, that wasn’t a freak result.

“So you have to kind of take a step back and see what has happened with English rugby, what has happened since 2003, where has the actual development of the players gone?

“South Africa, having had a poor World Cup in 2003, have gone away and really got it sorted out and they were just fantastic at the weekend, and to be frank, it was quite humiliating to be there,” he added on the current world champions.

Woodward, who has spent the last two years as the director of elite performance for the British Olympic Association (BOA), was not afraid to hide his frustration.

He continued: “You have to look at what’s happening behind the scenes, the whole coaching of the team, the management of the team, right down to actual player development, because we just seemed so far off from every single South African player.

“I couldn’t pick one English player that I could put into the South African team and that’s quite a scary thought for us because it was potentially our best players.

“The England team since 2003 has just generally been going down a slippery slope.”

Asked whether Johnson’s lack of experience was now beginning to show, Woodward added: “I was a big supporter of Martin coming in, because he’s bright enough, it’s the people he brings in, he can’t do it on his own. But it’s the team he puts around him now.

“That (his iconic status) will last a certain amount of time, but after that period you’ve got to bring in some really quality coaches to work with him, which I’m sure he will do.

“That’s Martin’s big challenge now because he’s never coached and he’s never managed, but in terms of respect he’s got that already.

“I believe that Martin Johnson will be successful for England.”