George Ford believes his playmaking axis with Owen Farrell is ready to stand the test of time after England reunited their creative brains trust for Saturday’s World Cup clash with Samoa.
Ford and Farrell will start together for the first time since March 2021 having won 31 of the 40 Tests in which they have been paired together – a success ratio of 77.5 per cent – and head coach Steve Borthwick is hoping that magic still lingers.
Having compiled man of the match displays against Argentina and Japan and then stepping off the bench for the rout of Chile, Ford has been restored at fly-half while Farrell moves to inside centre.
The first time the two operated together in tandem was also against Samoa in 2014 and Ford believes an attacking fulcrum that was particularly successful at the last World Cup can shine again.
“We’ve done it a lot of times and even though not as much in recent times, you can just feel it,” the Sale fly-half said.
“Even though there’s a bit of time where we haven’t actually played together the understanding and the connection would be as strong as its ever been.
“Not having done it for a period of time maybe could benefit us because it probably sharpens you up a bit.
“We’ve been having discussions all week about that partnership and combination – what do we need from each other?
“When you’ve been doing it for a period of time you probably take that for granted a little bit. It’s exciting because we’ve had some real success with it in the past.”
The last World Cup to be held in France took place in 2007 when Ford and Farrell practised with England as teenagers due to their family links with Brian Ashton’s squad.
George’s father Mike was an assistant coach while Farrell’s father Andy was a member of the playing squad.
“We spent time with the backs and the kickers. The lasting memories I have are kicking balls back for the kickers,” Ford said.
“That’s what made it so good, coming to France, in and out at the weekend like our families do now and then back to school on the Monday.
“It made it all a little bit more surreal, doing that at the weekend and going back to school on the Monday.”
Farrell, who leads the team and has been assigned goalkicking duties, believes the best might yet be to come from being asked to pull the strings in sync with his long-standing friend.
“I’m pretty close to George so we speak about everything rugby-wise, regardless of what the team is anyway. We’re on the same page. I’m looking forward to it,” Farrell said.
“People have talked about the amount of times we’ve played together before, but it’s not been for a while.
“We both hope we’ve kicked on since we’ve last played together. Hopefully we show that on the weekend.”
Farrell needs two more points to become England’s highest scorer of all time, eclipsing the mark of 1,179 set by Jonny Wilkinson.
Paris Olympics: Home hero Dupont sends France into rugby sevens semi-finals
Antoine Dupont sealed hosts France's progression to the rugby sevens semi-finals as his late try clinched victory over Argentina at the Paris Olympics.
Dupont, voted the 2021 World Player of the Year, missed out on this year's Six Nations to prepare himself for the sevens at the Games.
And he scored a brilliant solo try in the dying seconds at a jam-packed Stade de France to wrap up a 26-14 triumph over Argentina on Thursday.
Aaron Grandidier had earlier crossed the line twice along with back-rower Andy Timo's opener in a dominant first half, though Argentina fought back after the break.
Rodrigo Isgro responded for Los Pumas before Marcos Moneta sneaked over after France were reduced to six when Jordan Sepho was sin-binned.
Yet home favourite Dupont stepped up in the decisive moment, whipping the crowd into frenzy after setting up a last-four meeting against South Africa, who overcame New Zealand in the quarter-finals.
South Africa finished third in Pool A as New Zealand topped the group, but the Springboks exacted revenge against the All Blacks to secure a semi-final berth.
The Springboks raced into a two-try lead before holding out for a 14-7 victory to stun one of the pre-tournament favourites.
Fiji, champions in 2016 when the event was first introduced and four years later in Tokyo, unexpectedly found themselves up against it as Chay Mullins bundled over twice to snatch a 10-7 lead for Ireland at half-time.
Zac Ward extended the Irish lead but two tries in less than 30 seconds from Selestino Ravutaumada and Terio Tamani snatched a 19-15 turnaround.
The two-time Olympic champions will meet Australia after the Wallabies downed the United States with ease.
Corey Toole and James Turner both crossed in the first half en route to a convincing 18-0 triumph in the final match of the day, sending Australia into their first rugby sevens semi-final at the Olympics.
Australia 40-29 Georgia: Schmidt lays down gauntlet ahead of Rugby Championship opener
Joe Schmidt has said he remains unsure about some of his Australia players following their 40-29 victory over Georgia at Sydney Football Stadium.
Rob Valetini and Fraser McReight scored doubles for the hosts, with Australia surviving a red card picked up by Filipo Daugunu for a knee to the head of Sandro Todua to maintain the Wallabies' new head coaches unbeaten start.
Schmidt made 10 changes to the side that beat Wales last Saturday in Melbourne, with some taking the opportunity with both hands, while others fell short.
"Some guys have really put their hands up and other guys probably need a bit of work," Schmidt said.
"Some guys are delivering really consistent training performances and pushing for match day selection. Whether you're playing Georgia or next time we come out in Brisbane, it will be South Africa.
"We have a number of players who we're not sure about, who is maybe the best option in a particular position or who's the best combination."
Australia led 26-10 at the break, and although Georgia rallied in the second half, the home side triumphed in only the third meeting between the pair.
Hunter Paisami and Isaac Kailea went over the line early on, but Dauganu's sending off allowed Georgia a way back into the contest.
The visitors closed to within two points of Australia with two scintillating tries early in the second half through Davit Niniashvili and Akaki Tabutsadze.
However, their challenge faded as Niniashvili was sin-binned for a deliberate knockdown, as McReight and Valetini secured three successive wins for the first time since late 2021.
“It is only three weeks that we’ve been together and we made 10 changes and we knew there was an element of risk in that,” Schmidt said.
“But I like the way we built our way into the game, bar the early three points.
“We put a few nice tries together and built a lead, but it was really disappointing that they got back into the game and we were scrambling just a little bit.”
The Wallabies next face world champions South Africa in their Rugby Championship opener in Brisbane on August 10.
New Zealand 47-5 Fiji: Barrett seeking improvements despite resounding win
New Zealand captain Scott Barrett insists improvements will be made despite the All Blacks easing to a 47-5 win over Fiji in San Diego.
Scott Robertson's men scored seven tries at the Snapdragon Stadium in a side that included six debutants from their 2–0 series win over England last week.
The All Blacks led 26-5 at half-time, but Fiji still managed to restrict their opponents to the lowest score of their eight Test encounters.
"Fiji certainly showed up tonight in the physical areas," said captain Barrett. "It wasn't fully polished, we have pretty high standards in this team.
"They were able to get their hands on the ball to turn it over at times but we created enough opportunities to turn into points."
Caleb Clarke and Cortez Ratima scored converted tries in the opening exchanges, before Vilimoni Botitu notched Fiji's only try of the contest.
Sevu Reece would increase the All Blacks' advantage in the second half, before George Bell, on his debut, went over for the final try of the encounter.
The result maintains New Zealand's eight-game winning run, with head coach Scott Robertson nodding to the future following impressive performances from his debutants.
“Keeping them to five points is pretty special," Robertson said. "We scored some great tries, we left a lot out there.
"I’m really proud of a lot of efforts and the six debutants who really stood up.
“It was exciting to see how that talent went. They showed why we picked them. We’ve had seven debutants over the three games.
"It’s been intense with the travel coming over here. I’m pleased everyone has learnt quickly and been incredibly professional off the field.”
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