- Title: UNITED KINGDOM: RUGBY UNION - England make four changes for Argentina
- Date: 12th November 2009
- Summary: BAGSHOT, SURREY, ENGLAND, UK (NOVEMBER 11, 2009) (REUTERS) ENGLAND TEAM MEMBERS OBSERVING A MOMENT OF SILENCE AT TRAINING TO MARK REMEMBRANCE DAY VARIOUS OF ENGLAND TEAM TRAINING ENGLAND FORWARDS TRAINING WITH SCRUM MACHINE ENGLAND CAPTAIN STEVE BORTHWICK (BLACK HEAD GEAR) TALKING TO ENGLAND NUMBER EIGHT JAMES HESKELL (RED HEAD GEAR) AT TRAINING ENGLAND TEAM MANAGER MARTIN JOHNSON OBSERVING FORWARDS AT TRAINING VARIOUS OF ENGLAND BACKS AT TRAINING MARTIN JOHNSON SITS DOWN FOR MEDIA CONFERENCE (SOUNDEBITE) (English) ENGLAND TEAM MANAGER MARTIN JOHNSON SAYING: "The guys recognise, and we talked about it afterwards, we probably dropped off the pace after a good start. But that's a team thing. It's not individual pace, it's an urgency as a team to adapt to test rugby. We recognised that, we have to improve and we will improve. The very fact we've played a test match last week will help us improve and we need to be very conscious of that as well." ENGLAND PROP PAUL DORAN-JONES VARIOUS OF ENGLAND FORWARDS IN SCRUM TRAINING (SOUNDEBITE) (English) ENGLAND TEAM MANAGER MARTIN JOHNSON SAYING: "It's a bit of an acceleration for him, Graham (Rowntree) has had his eye on him this season, did we anticipate him probably coming in now? No, no we didn't. But he's got an opportunity. We know all about Argentina. They enjoy scrummaging, they're very good at it. It's a big part of the game so we need to be up to that challenge. But that doesn't change whoever's playing. It's a confrontational game anyway and when you play these guys, the scrum, the maul, that tight loose area, that's where they like to impose themselves. And that's a challenge for our team, not just our tight five." VARIOUS OF ENGLAND FORWARDS IN SCRUM TRAINING ENGLAND HOOKER DYLAN HARTLEY BEING INTERVIEWED BY MEDIA (SOUNDBITE) (English) ENGLAND HOOKER DYLAN HARTLEY SAYING: "They've always been big, they've always been physical. They pride themselves on scrummage and mauling. But we're England. We pride ourselves in the same area. We're big, we're physical, we'll take you on in the scrum. So big challenge but nothing we're afraid of." ENGLAND FORWARDS IN SCRUM TRAINING (SOUNDBITE) (English) ENGLAND HOOKER DYLAN HARTLEY SAYING: "Every weekend, whatever rugby team you play in, you go out to win. You don't go out to lose so we're hurting. Argentina in the summer, we lost one and won one so quite even there. So this weekend, tough challenge mate but we're certainly not going to back down." ENGLAND SCRUM HALF PAUL HODGSON (GREEN TOP) AND RESERVE SCRUM HALF DANNY CARE AT TRAINING ENGLAND RESERVE SCRUM HALF DANNY CARE SAYING: "We played them twice in the summer, two very physical games. Probably in an England shirt, the most physical side I've ever played against. They've got some fantastic players like Gonzalo Tiesi who plays at Harlequins so that will be a good bit of banter when we get back. So they're a very good team, they've shown that in the recent World Cups and we're going to have to put in a really good performance." VARIOUS OF ENGLAND TRAINING ENGLAND FLY HALF JONNY WILKINSON AT TRAINING
- Embargoed: 27th November 2009 00:36
- Keywords:
- Location: United Kingdom
- Country: United Kingdom
- Topics: Sport
- Reuters ID: LVA6JY2DCLAQ63KUUYKB8156PK0V
- Aspect Ratio: 4:3
- Story Text: England team manager Martin Johnson made four changes for Saturday's international against Argentina at Twickenham. (November 14) Injuries have hit Johnson's forward options and veteran prop Duncan Bell will make his first start for England in a test since 2005, replacing David Wilson who suffered neck and shoulder injuries against the Wallabies.
James Haskell is selected at number eight in place of the injured Jordan Crane, one of 10 players released back to their clubs this week. Dylan Hartley replaces Steve Thompson at hooker while Paul Hodgson is preferred at scrum half over Danny Care.
Johnson is without a dozen leading players through injury, including Andrew Sheridan, Phil Vickery, Julian White and Jason Hobson, as England try to recover from the disappointing 18-9 defeat by Australia.
Flyhalf Jonny Wilkinson and flanker Lewis Moody, both playing for the first time since the 2008 Six Nations, were England's most impressive performers against the Wallabies and Johnson knows he has to get more from his backline if he is to make any impression on the game's big guns.
Johnson is desperate for a win against the Pumas, with New Zealand to come the following week.
"The guys recognise, and we talked about it afterwards, we probably dropped off the pace (against Australia) after a good start," Johnson said.
"But that's a team thing. It's not individual pace, it's an urgency as a team to adapt to test rugby. We recognised that, we have to improve and we will improve. The very fact we've played a test match last week will help us improve and we need to be very conscious of that as well."
Gloucester prop Paul Doran-Jones is the latest player called up to England's injury depleted squad and is set to make his debut off the bench.
Johnson admitted Doran-Jones was not in their initial plans for the series but it is a huge chance for him to prove himself against one of the strongest forwards packs in world rugby.
"It's a bit of an acceleration for him. Graham (Rowntree) has had his eye on him this season, did we anticipate him probably coming in now? No, no we didn't," Johnson explained.
"We know all about Argentina. They enjoy scrummaging, they're very good at it. It's a big part of the game so we need to be up to that challenge. But that doesn't change whoever's playing. It's a confrontational game anyway and when you play these guys, the scrum, the maul, that tight loose area, that's where they like to impose themselves. And that's a challenge for our team, not just our tight five."
Hartley's elevation to the starting hooker's role was expected. He was forced on the bench for the Australian game after suffering a hamstring injury.
"They've always been big, they've always been physical," Hartle said.
"They pride themselves on scrummage and mauling. But we're England. We pride ourselves in the same area. We're big, we're physical, we'll take you on in the scrum. So big challenge but nothing we're afraid of."
Hartley added England was extremely motivated to bounce back after the defeat by Australia.
"Every weekend, whatever rugby team you play in, you go out to win. You don't go out to lose so we're hurting. So this weekend is a tough challenge but we're certainly not going to back down."
Hodgson will start at halfback ahead of Danny Care, who told Reuters Television his team, regardless of the result, should expect to be hurting after the game.
"We played them twice in the summer, two very physical games. Probably in an England shirt, the most physical side I've ever played against," Care said.
"They've got some fantastic players like Gonzalo Tiesi who plays at Harlequins so that will be a good bit of banter when we get back. So they're a very good team, they've shown that in the recent World Cups and we're going to have to put in a really good performance." - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2020. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
- Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
