UNLUCKY for some, and certainly for England fans, the rugby union side have now lost 13 times at the hands of southern hemisphere opposition in the last three years.
Worse, apart from a game against the Pacific Islanders, England have failed to score two tries in the same game at Twickenham against those countries in that period.
In the seven games since, England have lost six times – twice each against New Zealand, Australia and South Africa – with only the recent victory against Argentina to cheer the fans at rugby union’s headquarters.
The veritable tryfest when England scored three times against Argentina at Old Trafford in 2007 must provide heady memories for those who were there. Away from home has been a little better, but not much.
Eight games against the four heavyweight nations from the southern hemisphere have brought seven tries, seven losses and just one win – the tryless victory against Australia in the 2007 World Cup.
So, three years, 16 games, just 13 tries and, consequently, 13 defeats.
The awful standard of play at Twickenham on Saturday afternoon was symbolic of the extraordinary position that rugby union – and not just England – now finds itself in.
Massive crowds still attend big matches at the game’s famous stadiums, and the sheer scale and depth of media coverage at those, and other games, is the envy of most other sports.
But the plain fact is that most of those games are simply devoid of skill, speed, technique and athleticism and degenerate into a mundane kicking fest, punctuated by obscure interplay between packs of forwards, which produces very little of the glories of the game of rugby.
All sorts of reasons are advanced for the bad performances of the England rugby union team.
It is not a question of replacing Martin Johnson with another team manager, or of sacking Rob Andrew – I forget his title but it is another example of sport being stuffed full of very well paid chaps in smart suits doing very little of importance – or of appointing another captain, or seducing Shaun Edwards away from Wales or getting in a new kicking coach.
The problem is that the skill levels of the best players are woefully inadequate, largely because the game penalises skill and invention and rewards mediocrity.
When the full backs or wingers or even centres get the ball in open play, often with the nearest opponent 30 or more metres away, they hoof the ball into the air, in the general direction of the opposition, and leg after it, in the hope that an equally clueless opponent will drop it or knock on or fall over: that is their best attacking ploy.
The half backs, who should be the most talented ball handlers of them all, are little better and seem utterly incapable of doing much more than sending out flat passes to stationary team-mates or kicking the ball when they can’t think of doing anything else.
The poverty of ambition is really quite astonishing and across the entire team there is an inability to play rugby to any level of acceptable competence by using the essential rugby skills of running and passing with the ball. All is not lost, for there is one possible solution.
Put a premium on skill, speed and bone-shaking defence, lose a couple of the plodders from each side to free up some space for the talented players, and introduce a play-the-ball. If only England fans should be so lucky.
