Twickenham expects: what England must do to win this weekend

1. Onwards Christian! There may be few

more satisfying things for an England fan than seeing Chris Aston

throwing the “Ash splash” over the line, but the problem is we so

rarely get to see it nowadays. Two tries in two years is a poor

return from a player who burned so bright not long ago. Christian

Wade at London Wasps is the form wing and if there’s ever an autumn

test in which to give a newbie a break then Argentina is it. Plus,

the bonus is that Ashton will be champing at the bit as an impact

player, and come out flying, like it’s 2011 again.

2. Unleash the Lions. Ben Youngs made a big

difference to England’s tempo when he came on as a replacement for

Lee Dickson in the second half, and Lancaster should stick with the

Lions scrum half for the Argentina test. Fellow summer tourist Alex

Corbisiero should be fit for Saturday and if he is he should

be straight in – he’s arguably England’s finest player

currently.

3. Our boys to stick to the white stuff.

England at Twickenham just aren’t the same unless they play in the

all-white strip, and having got over the awful cerise experiment of

last year – when we lost to another lacklustre Aussie side – they

should never again toy with the palette on home turf. In fact,

going skins would be preferable. Yes, even Dan Cole.

4. Stuart Lancaster to get a migraine. A

selection headache, that is. After a shaky start in the lineout,

Courtney Lawes regained composure, defended like a Titan and was

instrumental in the build-up to England’s first try. With a bit of

confidence and more game time the Northampton giant could be

central to England’s set pieces for years to come, and with Geoff

Parling’s return – and Joe Launchbury’s solid form – it offers

England the kind of depth that’s needed to win the World Cup…

5. No one else to mention the World Cup. OK, so

the Webb Ellis is the Holy Grail of rugby union in the 21st

century, but let’s bring our sights in a little closer for a while.

How about simply aiming to beat New Zealand the following week -

just how good will that feel to make it two triumphs over the All

Blacks in a row? And what about next year’s RBS Six Nations? Let’s

focus on avenging the Carnage of Cardiff, and claiming a first a

Grand Slam for over a decade – a decade! Turn off the media talk

about a tournament nearly two years away, and focus on the scalps

we can collect on route.

Mark Russell

Mark Russell is GQ’s Managing Editor and has been with the magazine for five years. He also writes about sport and politics and has contributed to Glamour, Brides and Executive Golf. On GQ “duty” he once sat up until 5 o’clock in the morning singing “Wichita Lineman” with Huey Lewis. He didn’t ask Huey where the News were nowadays.

Twickenham expects: what England must do to win this weekend