I’m worried. My two biggest sporting passions are rugby and football. My two biggest passions are embodied by the England Rugby team and Aston Villa Football Club. At the moment neither are doing much to justify my lifelong support. The thing they appear to have in comment is the thing they lack.... someone in charge who has a clue what they are doing.
Both organisations appear to be intent on making the respective teams a laughing stock within their sports and how they are viewed nationally and globally. The RFU have made the decision to take their time in replacing Martin Johnson. Finally a reasonable decision! However, personally, I would have given him chance to build upon the experiences he had and the lessons he learned from the World Cup. I’m confident he would have shifted the old guard from his Elite squad. Those like Moody, Thompson, Tindall and Nick “£35k down the toilet” Easter should go. To be outwardly mocking younger players for training too hard is an absolute disgrace. I hope that hasn’t left a lasting impression on both the young players and any potential new coach. Hunger is a vital component of a successful team and not a quality you can buy.
I’m still unclear as to who is in charge of what at the RFU. Rob Andrew, the man with more titles than Man Utd, has had another change of role which apparently see’s him in charge of everything in Elite Rugby, except the Elite squad itself. I saw no evidence of input from him pre-tournament or during. I assume he remains with the RFU because the aspects his role has responsibility for (that he claims responsibility for at least) appear to be progressing well. I refer to the Saxon’s and the age-group teams. Andrew’s position is further strengthened by the success of the Seven’s squad who have retained their Dubai 7’s title.
The players let themselves down at the World Cup. I believe Martin Johnson was right to trust them. They abused that trust. At the end of the day they are grown men and fully aware of their responsibilities as professional athletes. They are also meant to be at the more intelligent end of the sportsman spectrum. Mike Tindall needs to look up the word scapegoat in the dictionary!!
The RFU have let themselves down post-World Cup. At one point there were 5 different reviews going on into varying aspects of the tournament performance, the results of which were then leaked to the media. Rob Andrew refuses to take responsibility for anything, then changes his mind but refuses to resign. Johnson resigns. Martyn Thomas fines Tindall then gets sacked. Chris Ashton and James Haskell are found to be not-guilty of any wrong-doing, yet given suspended fines anyway with the RFU having apparently advised them to pay the alleged injured party hush money! It is Pantomime season I guess!
The RFU are now looking to recruit one of the best coaches in the world, with money being “no object”. I hope the new man can see past the Pantomime Donkey that is the current RFU structure and see that there is a pool of highly talented, young and hungry players who want to play for England because it is the pinnacle of your career, not because you get a £35k win bonus.
Talk of Pantomime Donkeys brings me to my beloved Villa and Alex McLeish. I was concerned when he was appointed, not because of his association with the inferior side of the city, but because he was a negative tactician whose sides play boring defensive football. I was prepared to give him a chance and initially it looked like he was winning his battle to convince the Villa fans he could deliver positive football.
Alas, it appears he is proving my initial fears to be correct. Against Spurs recently he played two right backs in an attempt to quell the threat of Gareth Bale. Bale contributed the assists to the two Spurs goals which tells you all you need to know.
And then there is Heskey. The striker who can’t score, converted to an attacking midfield player who can’t pass or create! Genius! My only hope is that now Martin O’Neil has returned to the Premiership with Sunderland he will buy Heskey (again). He is more than welcome to take a number of others he wasted money on when he was at Villa Park.
Its not as if we are without talent, in particular with our young players. Bannan, Herd, Albrighton and Delph provide a good balance of creativity, steel and energy. We should be creating plenty of chances. According to recent Opta stats we aren’t. Opta shows that Darren Bent has the fewest touches per match of any player in the league. No wonder we aren’t scoring enough goals. We know that Bent is good enough, he is a 20-goal-a-season striker.
In terms of defence it wasn’t that long ago that we possessed one of the strongest in the league. We comprise an Irish international goal keeper, a Scottish international right back, an (ex?) England international left back, and Welsh & Irish international centre backs. You would expect that level of experience to be able to defend set-pieces with ease.
So we have a striker who can score goals, the potential of a very creative midfield and an international defence. It begs the question where is it going wrong? The answer has to be in the coaching and tactics. The tactics come from?? Yes, McLeish.
My hopes for the last bit of 2011 and the start of 2012? Villa start playing to their potential, remove the negativity and aren’t dragged into a relegation scrap and the RFU allow Stuart Lancaster the freedom to pick and coach his own Elite squad for the 6 Nations.
My worries for the last bit of 2011 and the start of 2012? McLeish continues to fit as many defenders into the team as possible and plays Heskey in goal and England continue to stifle the young, talented and enthusiastic players in favour of “experienced” players who aren’t good enough (and never were).
