大象传媒

Legends Johnson and Stransky re-live the nerves (65)

• Tom Fordyce
• 19 Oct 07, 10:20 AM

Paris 鈥� Friday morning - Every now and then, you have a chat with someone so expert, so unarguably knowledgeable, that you just have to ferme your bouche and listen to every single word they say.

Such was the scenario the other day when I parked myself down next to Martin Johnson and Joel Stransky at a Visa Legends reception down the road in Bercy.

Did they know their onions? My giddy aunts 鈥� to the extent that I鈥檓 just going to step away and let their words speak for themselves.

Lower down, we鈥檝e got Joel on what it鈥檚 like to be a player in the final few hours before a .

But first up, here鈥檚 on what the England boys have to do to snatch the William Webb Ellis trophy from the Springboks鈥� grasp.

鈥淚n any game, and particularly in the World Cup final, the first 10 minutes is where it鈥檚 all at," said Johnson.

"If England can keep in the game 10 minutes at a time, respond to what happens to them, be pro-active and create stuff they鈥檒l have a chance. But above all else, they need to be relentless.

鈥淪omeone on the South African team will do something pretty good 鈥� make half a break, get through 鈥� and it鈥檚 all about how we respond to that. They鈥檙e going to score points at some period during the game, and it鈥檚 how we respond to those points.

鈥淚t鈥檚 all about what鈥檚 next in rugby. If you score, what next? If they score, you need to score next. If we can keep our focus, keep our error-rate to an absolute minimum, that鈥檚 all pressure on them. If we don鈥檛 let them out of their third of the field, if we don鈥檛 give away a penalty, if we don鈥檛 allow them any space to make a break or take a kick.

鈥淧ut pressure on them, let them make the errors. We鈥檙e not going to give you that interception, we鈥檙e not going to drop the ball on our own 22 and let you run it in.

鈥淲e鈥檙e going to say 鈥� you鈥檒l have to do something special to score points today. Any mistakes you make, we鈥檒l be right on them. We鈥檙e going to create opportunities for ourselves with our own play, and we鈥檙e going to make it very difficult for you.

鈥淵ou can鈥檛 control what the opposition is thinking before the match, but during the game, through the way you play, you can affect how they feel physically and what鈥檚 happening to them mentally. We did that in the last two games and we need to do that again on Saturday night.

鈥淣erves can get you at any point during the week before. You have these moments when the fear just hits you.

鈥淏ut if you can think of it as a game of rugby, rather than a World Cup final, that will help you. If you start thinking about the enormity of each individual action on the pitch, you鈥檙e going to have a problem.

鈥溾�橧t鈥檚 just a rugby game on a rugby field, the same as every field you鈥檝e ever played on.鈥� That makes it more simple 鈥� then it just becomes about just scoring more points than they do. It鈥檚 just a game, just a game of rugby.鈥�

Whoosh. Talk about analysis.

Here鈥檚 Joel鈥檚 chat:

鈥淭he night before the final, you have to find some way of relaxing.

鈥淚t鈥檚 so hard to sleep 鈥� you can鈥檛 sit still, the butterflies are going 鈥� so you have to calm everyone down and find a way of getting a bit of sleep.

鈥淪ome will stay in and listen to music, some will get out of the hotel and walk around, get away from the small room and get out in the open.

鈥淧ersonally, I couldn鈥檛 sleep at all before the big game. I would toss and turn and lie awake until the early hours.

鈥淭he biggest problem is the waiting. It鈥檚 energy-draining 鈥� the nerves start unwinding and it eats up all the good stuff inside your body.

鈥淚t鈥檚 the worst thing of all. When I got to the ground, I was okay. But the morning 鈥� you鈥檙e waiting for the next bit of stimulus 鈥� first it鈥檚 a meal, then you wait for a meeting, then another meal, then it鈥檚 waiting to get on the bus. It seems to take forever.

鈥淲hen I got to the stadium, I鈥檇 go out on the pitch 鈥� look at the grass, check the angles, see what the wind was doing 鈥� and these things would keep your mind busy. Which boots should you wear, and have I got the right studs in 鈥� what about that corner where it鈥檚 a bit damper 鈥� it all helps.

"Then you get strapped up, put your shirt on 鈥� it鈥檚 a busy time, and at least you鈥檙e now in the process of getting ready to play. That last couple of minutes rushes by so quickly. Suddenly the moment to walk out is upon you.

鈥淚n some matches I was so focused that I can鈥檛 remember a thing 鈥� what the stadium looked like, what colour shirt the ref was wearing 鈥� nothing.

鈥淚n other games, I managed to find a slightly more relaxed demeanour, absorbing the crowd and the singing and the atmosphere and the anthems.

鈥淎nd you need to absorb it, or otherwise you鈥檒l look up at some point in the game and it will hit you all in one go.

鈥淓ngland have to be enormously confrontational. They have to win the scrums 鈥� which I鈥檓 sure they will do 鈥� and then they need to win the contact situations and the breakdowns.

鈥淢ost importantly they have to defend wonderfully, not make mistakes. If they go 10 or 13 points down, I think it鈥檚 all over. They don鈥檛 have it in the armoury to go out and chase the game.

鈥淚f England are competitive, kick their goals and get down to the last 10 minutes and it鈥檚 close, they鈥檒l be very tough to beat. They鈥檙e very good at closing the game out 鈥� . They鈥檙e so street-wise, and that won鈥檛 change 鈥� they have great players in a couple of key positions, and heaps of experience.

鈥淪outh Africa haven鈥檛 been pushed into a situation like that, where they鈥檝e have to pull it off at the death. I would be concerned if it鈥檚 awfully close in the last few minutes. But I think South Africa will be too strong in the opening 20 minutes. They鈥檒l take their chances. I鈥檓 saying 24-12.鈥�

Tom Fordyce is a 大象传媒 Sport journalist travelling around France in a camper van with Ben Dirs.

• Permalink