ANALYSIS: The selection of George Ford at flyhalf has tipped England’s gameplan and will have the Wallabies preparing for an aerial bombardment on Sunday (AEDT).
Ford has been favoured over a pair of Smiths - Fin and Marcus - despite the pair featuring across the British & Irish Lions series.
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The 32-year-old stepped up during this period, guiding England to a pair of wins over Argentina away from home.
The stats from this game should give the Wallabies a clear idea of what to expect at Allianz Stadium, Twickenham.
Across the two games, Ford kicked 39 times, 26 of which came outside of the 22, for over 1200 metres combined.
This included 22 for 755 metres in the first Test, wearing down Argentina for a 35-12 win.
It leaves Ford comfortable on top for most kicks (25) and metres (734) per game than any other player in Test Rugby over the past 12 months.
Ford’s boot, combined with the aerial prowess of fullback Freddie Steward, is a lethal combination.
Steward has shown his ability to burn teams off the kick. Last year, he gained 304 against Bordeaux-Begles in a Champions Cup match, including 240 metres from kick returns, both the highest tallies in a European match since Opta have recorded this data.
It’s an area that the Wallabies have struggled with, especially throughout the Rugby Championship and their last Test against Japan.
Across those seven games, 31 kicks were retained by opposition sides, with almost half of these coming against the Springboks.
The reaction also comes after the significant success the Wallabies had in this area last match-up 12 months ago, with Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii particularly damaging.
The Australians won back four kick-offs in the year in the thrilling extra-time win, including one in the final seconds to set up Max Jorgensen’s winner.
It was the most a team has ever won back in a tier-one Test in the 2020s as all four were won clean by the talented outside centre, leaping high to allow the Wallabies to counter following England points.
Whether attacking or not, the inclusion of Tommy Freeman at outside centre will likely seek to counter the effectiveness of Suaalii aerially across the park.
Freeman has developed as one of the best wingers in England but has shown his versatility in the midfield before, moving there earlier in the year in a win over Wales.
The triple threat of Ford, Steward and Freeman will leave the Wallabies in little doubt about what to expect on Sunday.
