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England coach Steve Borthwick thinks his team will have to deal with 50 contestable kicks a week on Saturday
Steve Borthwick says he expects Wales to look to the skies when they face England at the start of this year’s Six Nations.
The England coach reiterated his belief at the Six Nations launch in Edinburgh that Wales will put up around 50 contestable kicks at Allianz Stadium next month. Borthwick had first raised the idea on BBC’s Rugby Union Weekly podcast.
“What you can see with Wales, you see what Steve Tandy has done,” said Borthwick. “The nature of the game they are trying to play, the changes he has made in the autumn.
“He has brought that defensive system from Scotland where they have two men tackling high, trying to hold people up in the air so that you can see the tackle height’s going up.
“You can see they know they have got pace on the edges so they are going to come in and try and move the ball to edges. The biggest thing, the thing that is core to their game is they have that contestable kick game that they have really gone after.
“I reckon they are going to come here to Allianz Stadium, I reckon they are probably going to kick, one ruck kick, one ruck kick, maybe 50 contestable kicks here at Allianz Stadium in a couple of weeks’ time.
“We are going to be prepared for that.” JOIN OUR WALES RUGBY FACEBOOK PAGE! Latest news, analysis and much more
Wales head coach Steve Tandy has been open that a strong aerial is a part of the gameplan he’s building, with the autumn’s most impressive performance against New Zealand built upon winning contestable kicks in the air and then playing to space.
The fact that there’s less blocking for kicking allowed now means the aerial game is more of a platform than ever if done right.
Wales’ Six Nations squad is filled with wings who are strong in the air. Uncapped Gabriel Hamer-Webb joins Tom Rogers, Josh Adams and Louis Rees-Zammit, while Rio Dyer remains in the mix despite missing out on selection.
When asked about Borthwick’s belief that Wales would kick the leather off the ball at Twickenham, Tandy said: “I haven’t heard it today! It’s a big number!
“That’s the game at the minute. Once you get into the 22s, it’s hard to get out.
“The momentum that builds, with yellow cards. I think where you’ve opened the game up in one aspect, around creating collisions, there’s probably more kicking.
“Because you know when you get to the other end of the field, things like discipline and the mindset of referees around offside is creating more space. So making sure you’re the right end of the pitch is a big part of the game too.”
