Phenomenal Ford Crucial to Defeating the Kiwis

In November 2024, England fly-half Ford looked disheartened on the Allianz Stadium turf.

Ford had been summoned off the sidelines to assist the hosts close out a memorable triumph facing the Kiwis, but instead was unable to score a decisive kick plus a drop-goal attempt as his side were beaten by two points.

In the wake of those pivotal failures, Ford had to work hard to get another shot at delivering glory to the English team.

He saw just 25 minutes of action during this year's Six Nations however a series of strong showings, notably in the warm-weather tour versus Argentine and American teams as Fin Smith and Marcus Smith were away on British and Irish Lions duty, reestablished him strongly among starting candidates.

At 32 years old did more than justify the manager's confidence in starting him against the All Blacks, plus the club standout delivered a player-of-the-match performance to assist England to a first win against the All Blacks at home for the first time since 2012.

The crucial point occurred as Ford converted two drop-goals in succession just before the break.

It helped England bounce back from being down 12-0 to narrow the gap to 12-11 by halftime, ahead of the manager's skilled reserves again delivered during the final period to help his side to a convincing 33-19 victory.

"Recognition should be offered to the senior players in our team, particularly Ford," Borthwick told. "That period as he scored those drop-kicks, he managed the game remarkably well.

"Twelve months ago I believed Ford substituted and competed very effectively [against New Zealand].

"One kick struck the post while he attempted a difficult drop-goal, but he played really well.

"He's an exceptional captain, an outstanding athlete and an even finer individual. We are fortunate to have him in our squad."

Drop-goals 'part of the strategy'

New Zealand began rapidly at Allianz Stadium, racing into a twelve-point advantage via touchdowns by two key players.

Following Ollie Lawrence's powerful finish, the fly-half's successive three-pointers resulted in the home side bounced into the halftime break with the momentum.

"The tough part in those moments comes when the board shows 12-0, we must maintain to our plan and our philosophy the best way to play the game is," Ford explained.

"We fought our way back into contention and we understood if we started the final period strongly, with the bench coming on, we would be in an advantageous spot.

"Even with 15 minutes left, we were positioned defending our goal line following a card, so we had challenges during that phase also.

"I think that's what Test rugby is - who manages best in those circumstances most effectively."

The two attempts happened within a two-minute span as Ford who successfully converted three drop-goals in a win against Argentina during the 2023 World Cup, demonstrated his full 104-cap experience.

Ford hit two drop-kicks with Sale during a Premiership match occurring during challenging weather against Bath - this represents an ability he has extensively practiced.

"It [the drop-goals] is always in the plan," Ford continued.

"Borthwick represents a phenomenal leader since he continually reminding me, and appropriately as three points is valuable throughout the match of competition."

Ford directed his team superbly across the pitch all game, executing intelligent kicks - for both attacking and defensive purposes and in finding space behind the visitors' backfield.

His signature 'spiral bomb' further confused the New Zealand player, who mishandled the ball.

Having started the national team's triumph over Australia in early November, Ford passed on the fly-half position to his replacement during the Fiji match the following week.

However the greatest challenge in terms of difficulty occurred versus the multiple World Cup winners, so Ford returned to his position.

The national side, currently enjoying ten consecutive victories, face Argentina in late November creating intrigue to learn if Borthwick goes back to Fin Smith or persists with Ford.

Whichever decision is made, Ford demonstrated with two years remaining from a World Cup that there is plenty of career ahead within him.