England can’t afford to lose battle of the breakdown against predatory Aussies, says David Flatman

Having watched Japan run rings around England at Twickenham on Saturday, it comes as no surprise that it is the concentration of Eddie Jones’s team that is being called into question.

That and the unarguable fact that Owen Farrell is now indispensable. To compare the first half last Saturday to that of a week before, when the All Blacks were in town, is to compare rickshaws and rabbits. This time, against lesser, lesser-known opposition, England looked dazed and confused.

Not only were England seemingly outfought in the first half, consistently beaten to the breakdown and consistently chasing Japanese shadows, they appeared unable to adjust on the hoof. A good talking-to in the changing room from those with a better view and a lower heart rate was needed.

What happened in the second half showed much of what England will need to bring, ideally from the start, against Australia this Saturday.

Maro Itoje, England’s best player, was a man on a mission. Without ever seeming to tire, he carried, tackled and hustled hard. Although he is an entirely different specimen from Martin Johnson, he was Johnson-esque in that he led by beastly example, making life as uncomfortable as possible for any opposing players in his environs. The only forward to outshine him was Michael Leitch, the Japan flanker who, as he did in the World Cup, tore the place up.

When the Wallabies arrive at HQ, they will bring with them, in David Pocock and Michael Hooper, a brace of Leitches. To this end, England — presumably with Sam Underhill back in the starting line-up — will have a major job to do at the breakdown.

Japan were able to produce quick ball too easily, the English defenders not able to slow them down in the seconds after the tackled man hit the deck. The Australian ground-based hunters will pitch up with just as much speed and accuracy over that ball, but they will also bring a degree more bulk and static strength with them, making them more difficult to disrupt, whichever team is in possession.

If England are to concentrate on one thing above all others, zeroing in on and obliterating golden jerseys at the breakdown is it.

George Ford, now a 50-cap international, would have given his boots for his entire pack to operate with the effectiveness and energy of Itoje for more of Saturday’s match. It would certainly have made his life much easier.

Against New Zealand, as he watched on from the reserves’ — sorry, finishers’ — bench, Ford saw Farrell given as much front-foot ball as any creative type could wish for. Frustratingly for the Leicester fly-half, he wasn’t offered such riches against Japan and it now seems likely that he will again be relegated to the bench as England gear up for the arrival of another superpower.

This, to my mind, has much to do with adrenaline. The odds of England turning in a first-half performance as limp as Saturday’s against Australia are very slim, because of the brand of opposition. As much as we don’t want to think such thoughts of our biggest, bravest and best, sometimes it can be a bit less exciting to play smaller, less threatening teams. The fear just isn’t at the same plane and so the level of drive may be diluted, too.

This is where leaders come in. Enter Farrell. Kyle Sinckler, too, was quite excellent off the bench, but it was the Saracens man who gave England direction in the second period, creating simple shape but managing to augment the intensity of the play within that shape to a level that seemed more like the England we expected to see.

Farrell will need to bring his entire bag of talent this weekend, as the Australian defence will be waiting for him. And Sinckler, along with Itoje, will find himself responsible for the supply of aggressive ball carrying, shuddering defensive collisions and, most vitally of all, brutal clearing out at the ruck.

There are few better ways to check a side’s mental state than to watch its players hitting rucks. With Wallaby predators lying in wait, England had better be on their game, this time from minute one.