Woodward: I am concerned for England against Wales

Former coach Sir Clive Woodward has revealed that he is worries about how England will fare against Wales this weekend.

Will England make changes for the clash against Wales this weekend?

Two unbeaten records go up against each other this weekend as Stuart Lancaster’s men host Warren Gatland’s team at Twickenham.

Wales have received plenty of plaudits over the last few months of course, with some saying they are the favourites for the Grand Slam this year.

Woodward echoed these views, saying that he is concerned about England being exposed by Wales and their pace.

He said: “Rugby is such a simple game. Defensively you want to slow the ball and have as much time as possible to get your lines organised.”

“Offensively it is the opposite. You must play so fast, individually and collectively, that the defence you are trying to break does not have time to think.”

“You need players who can think quickly and move the ball away from the contact area as quickly as possible.”

“This is why I am concerned for England against Wales, because speed of ball from contact, whether a ruck or an offload, is currently the biggest difference between the two teams.”

“Amazingly last week in Cardiff against Scotland, Wales made more off-loads in their first offensive foray of the match than England managed in the whole game against Italy in Rome! There are other worrying comparisons.”

“The time between an England player making contact with an opponent and the scrum-half touching the ball after the recycle was an average of 4.2 seconds.”

“The average by Wales was 2.85 seconds, an important difference.”

It will be interesting to see if Woodward’s concerns play their part this weekend.

It should certainly be a fascinating match and one which everyone is looking forward to.

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