Jonathan Davies questions England training intensity after Six Nations defensive lapses

Former Wales and British & Irish Lions centre Jonathan Davies believes England‘s defensive issues in the Six Nations could be linked to an intense training load during the week, leaving players fatigued on match day.

England have been criticised for a number of soft defensive moments during the championship, with opposition teams finding space and line breaks easier than expected against Steve Borthwick’s side.

Davies points to defensive lapses where England’s line has looked disorganised and slow to react, allowing attacking teams to exploit small gaps.

Speaking on The Rugby Paper Roundup, Davies suggested their problems may stem from the physical demands placed on the squad during the training week, and the former Scarlets centre believes England’s preparation during the week could be leaving players short of the energy needed to sustain defensive intensity across long passages of play.

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Tired

“One of the observations I see is that they do seem a bit tired early on in games,” Davies told TRP. “That first try (Tommaso) Menoncello hits an angle where it’s like the defence looks tired.

“They’re not square looking in; they’re ball-watching, they’re getting caught and not turning their bodies quick enough.

“I always hear that their working week is a tough working week where they get put through their paces quite a lot.

“That might mean going into a game on Saturday, the boys might not have the energy that they need to execute or to keep defending for a certain amount of phases.

“To defend 30 phases takes a lot of energy. If you’re doing that in a week and having tough training sessions, you need to train at an intensity, yes, but you have to be smart with when that intensity gets pushed on the players and taken off as well.”

Balance

Davies stressed that international rugby requires a careful balance between preparation and recovery, with players needing to arrive on match day fresh enough to execute their roles.

“There’s a fine balance between getting yourself ready to play at international level and being too tired to play at international level,” he said.

“And I think there does seem to be a bit of fatigue in the English team when phases of play get to the high numbers.”

England’s defensive problems have been compounded by selection changes throughout the campaign, with Borthwick making significant alterations to his side as he searches for the right combination.

Davies believes constant tinkering – a record nine alterations before last weekend’s defeat to Italy – can also create uncertainty within a squad if players are unsure about their roles or the team’s long-term direction.

Leadership

“There’s a huge amount of pressure,” Davies said. “Pressure makes you do interesting things.

“The best coaches I’ve worked with are very true to themselves. They stick to their guns and back the system and their principles regardless of outside noise.”

Drawing on his experiences with Wales and the Lions, Davies emphasised the importance of leadership from the coaching team in maintaining belief during difficult periods.

“As a coach, if you stand true and fully believe and commit to what you want, then that gets buy-in from the players,” he said.

“You have to convince the players that this is the right direction that we’re going, and that’s where true leadership comes from and I was lucky to have that with Warren Gatland.

“In 2017, the New Zealand press were on his back, but he stuck with his guns and that allowed the Lions to compete with the best side in the world.”

The latest episode with Jonathan Davies is available in full on YouTube, Spotify and Apple Podcasts by searching for The Rugby Paper Roundup.  

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