Woodward keeping spirits up

Clive Woodward today repeated his unshakeable belief that England will produce a command performance when it matters most against World Cup semi-final opponents France.

The Six Nations champions might have stumbled, rather than rumbled, their way towards Sunday’s Telstra Stadium showdown, but head coach Woodward doesn’t even know where the panic button is, let alone be trying to press it.

South Africa, Samoa and Wales have all given England some scary moments, yet Woodward’s men remain unbeaten after five World Cup games and are just two more victories away from lifting the ultimate prize.

England’s smallest winning margin so far was 11 points, against Wales in last weekend’s quarter-final, which is hardly a statistic that suggests they’ve struggled to finish opponents off.

While the manner of victory hasn’t matched such highs of defeating Australia in Melbourne five months ago or New Zealand in Wellington a week earlier, England are now at the World Cup business end with their dream still intact.

“The time to be ultra-critical is when you are being successful,” said Woodward.

“We’ve won, and we make sure that we arrive with a smile at the team meeting, even smile at the press, but it is how you handle it.

“I am very confident and positive for Sunday night. It has been a great week, and it is going to be a massive game. I have no doubt that England are really going to turn up on Sunday night.”

Most of Australia, it appears, both expect and want France to win.

They are the only country to have toppled England – twice – in the last 22 Tests, which is no mean achievement given that recent red rose scalps include Tri-Nations heavyweights Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, a total of six times.

France know how to beat England, yet Woodward has also enjoyed his fair share of success against Les Bleus, recording five victories from eight starts during his six-year coaching reign.

But perhaps most significantly of all, Woodward can at last send out his strongest team into the World Cup arena this weekend.

For the first time since England’s opening game against Georgia on October 12, all 30 squad members have been available in terms of selection.

And that feelgood factor, especially surrounding the return of hugely-influential flanker Richard Hill following a persistent hamstring problem, cannot be dismissed.

With centre Mike Catt in sufficiently good form to remove his Bath colleague Mike Tindall from the starting line-up, prop Trevor Woodman taking over from veteran Jason Leonard and dangerous strike runner Josh Lewsey restored at full-back, Woodward has been able to select from strength.

It is why those people close to the England camp feel that Sunday will be the day when everything clicks.

“In international rugby, you go into games with a plan and a way you want to play, but it doesn’t always work out that way,” said number eight Lawrence Dallaglio, who will pack down alongside Hill and Neil Back for a back-row battle opposite the revered French breakaway unit of Serge Betsen, Olivier Magne and Imanol Harinordoquy that could ultimately decide Sunday’s outcome.

“The character, leadership and strength in this team has got us out of trouble. I think we’ve lost one of our last 21 games, and there is no doubting that we’ve got what it takes at this level.

“So far we’ve won the games by a 10-12 point margin, and that’s not a close game in my book. A close game is one point.

“It’s obvious we would like to play a bit more and with some style, but you have to change and adapt to the way you’re allowed to play. We’ve won those difficult games.

“Everyone saves their best for England,” he added.

“South Africa were good against England and disappointing against New Zealand; Samoa raised their game once against us; and Wales threw everything at us because maybe they had already achieved their target of reaching the quarter-finals.

“On Sunday, both sides will know each other very well. We know their strengths – there are a lot – and their weaknesses, and, vice versa, they know ours. But I still believe they’ve yet to be put under any significant pressure.

“It will be a very different game to anything we’ve seen so far in the World Cup.

“France play a very territorial game, and they have a very strong, attacking front-five. Confrontation in the pack will be the telling point of the game. I don’t think Ireland were able to put France under any significant pressure in the quarter-finals.”

By Woodward’s own declaration, “sheer bloodymindedness” has got England through some of the stickier parts in their World Cup campaign.

But Sunday is the time to deliver, a time to silence the doubters and illustrate exactly why they are ranked as world rugby’s top team.

There are no second chances. Get it wrong, and England face the numbing anti-climax of a third and fourth place play-off game against Australia or New Zealand in Sydney next Thursday.

Get it right, and England will be in the 2003 World Cup final within sight of their Holy Grail.

Woodward maintains that his players perform best under extreme pressure, and if that theory holds true, then France might not know what has hit them.