Robshaw: Pressure to perform
England captain Chris Robshaw admitted he'd been laid low by the flak he encountered after some questionable decision-making during the November Tests.
Robshaw's leadership qualities came under severe scrutiny following England's losses at home to Australia and South Africa in November.
He was criticised for running kickable penalties against the Wallabies and then, with time running out the following week against the Springboks, his decision to tell Owen Farrell to go for goal with England four points behind and needing the five that would come from a try for victory.
Farrell landed the kick but time ran out and England lost 16-15.
However, England then ended the year on a colossal high when they returned to Twickenham the following week and, against all predictions, beat world champions New Zealand by a record 38-21.
It was just what Harlequins flanker Robshaw, who captained the London club to the Premiership title last season, needed after a rocky few weeks.
"Beating New Zealand like that was definitely satisfying for me, it's always nice to finish on something special," said the 26-year-old openside.
"The previous year we as a team and myself had enjoyed a lot of good press.
"It was my first time experiencing the other side.
"The day after South Africa I went into camp and my head was a bit down. I went home for the weekend to try and get away. I was a bit down and moping about.
"That night the boys spoke to me and said, 'Don't worry, we're going to win this weekend and it will be fine'.
"It really made me appreciate the character of the guys we have in the England squad at the moment."
England, runners-up in last season's Six Nations, head into their 2013 opener at home to Scotland on February 2 as one of the favourites for the tournament with France, the other major European side who impressed during the autumn test series.
And Robshaw said it was vital England maintained the standards they had set for themselves against the All Blacks.
"New Zealand is the benchmark of where we want to be as a team. It's where we strive to be," he said
"We believed we could beat them. When you've been kicked down and written off and this and that and has been said about you, it makes you closer together.
"It bonds you and puts your backs against the wall. You want to prove people wrong," he added.
"But the win against New Zealand has gone, now it's about the Six Nations."
England are no longer an unknown quantity and Robshaw accepts they will face increased expectations as a result of their win over the All Blacks.
"There might become a bit more pressure because of the autumn, but it's about dealing with that," he said.
"It's a different type of situation that everyone's very excited about. It's about backing up what we did last year."
Comments
JamieTheProp says...
As I've said before The NZ win was nice - but on the 2nd Feb will be irrelevant!
I'd much rather England win against Scotland and move one game closer to a grand slam (possible, but not likely) - that for me is a bigger game.
I would consider a 6 Nations win (with a Grand Slam even better) as far surpassing a single win against the world champions. It will be harder (and not very likely) but it is a possibility.
Winning the biggest international tournament in the world (after the world cup) is the aim - a good win against the World Champions is nothing but a helpful springboard and confidence boost.
I think that is what most informed and passionate England fans would believe - it is all about moving forward and improving.
I for one am looking forward to the 6 Nations - a great tournament!
Posted 13:07 24th January 2013
lawynd says...
@jmanngod - you're the one spouting bollocks, as usual. Nobody in England (at least nobody worth listening to) is or has gotten carried away with result against New Zealand, you're just throwing your toys out of the pram because your precious All Blacks got done good and proper. It's funny how you've crawled back out from under your stone now the dust has settled a little, you were nowhere to be seen in November.
Posted 09:55 24th January 2013
jmanngod says...
@ Fish.... well written. You are right.
Posted 20:27 23rd January 2013
jmanngod says...
such bollocks. One fluke game against a massively under-performing NZ shouldn't divert away from the dreadful kicking, clueless tactics nor uninspiring play that saw England lose most of their games. In some ways I am glad they beat NZ as they have returned to the norm: inflated sense of where they are at.
Posted 20:26 23rd January 2013
davodiablo says...
Englands win is worth talking about . Mr Fish doesn't represent an entire nation .
Posted 18:38 23rd January 2013
Chubbylugs says...
Nice try fish, I think that depends on whether England push on from here or remain sub par like the last 10 years
It's no different to the welsh with Neath etc. the ABs have nearly always put out an excellent side so beating them should be congratulated. The Kieran bracken game in 93 is still fondly remembered as is the Wellington victory in 2003. They don't happen often
Posted 12:25 23rd January 2013
nabberuk says...
@FISH
You do realize that the interviewer asks these guys questions about the win, they don't just start talking about it on there own.
Posted 12:20 23rd January 2013
heathy says...
@ FISH - Trolling with sour grapes doesn't become you and just shows your lack of rugby knowledge. Nobody is saying that England have beat the All Blacks so it's job done and we will not need to win another game. We can all relax now. It was a bench mark which has been set and that is what we need to aspire to. That is sensible.
I'm a fan of Robshaw as he is completely committed, honest and is consistent playing for England. Yes, he has made some not so good calls BUT he will learn from that and that is what any England fan would like to see. Some of our best captains (Carling, Johnson) all made mistakes but learned from them and went on to do extremely well. He has the respect of the team and he leads from the front. I'm not saying those matches didn't matter but they were less important in relation to the bigger picture. It is a young side that will make mistakes and lose games. As long as we lose less games and make less mistakes as we strive to improve then that is what matters. We are no-where near the finished article and don't pretend to be. We have a long way to go and beating NZ was good to see what we can do. Are we now world beaters? Not by a long way. If we carry on improving like we are then we could be up there. We'll see. The attitude is right so ignore your critics Robshaw as everybody has an opinion whether they have the right to it or not. Unless they have walked in your shoes then it isn't worth hearing as it matters not a jot. Stick to your guns as we are behind you. Good luck.
Posted 11:47 23rd January 2013
APV1 says...
He's learned and England have learned. We might win the 6N. We might even get a Grand Slam. But France (in particular) and the other 4 teams will give us some very tough Tests. All teams always do.
@ FISH - to beat the universally-acknowledged best team in the world is something to be proud of. So if the fans do get a bit carried away, suck it up. Robshaw isn't, and that's what matters:
"But the win against New Zealand has gone, now it's about the Six Nations."
Posted 11:43 23rd January 2013
jestnation says...
We'll still be talking about beating New Zealand 100 years ago will we?
Considering you think we've cracked the eternal mystery of time travel I reckon we can gloat about anything we want.
Posted 11:35 23rd January 2013
DutchWing says...
Only until december FISH
Posted 10:57 23rd January 2013
physiodan says...
@FISH something that many other teams wont be able to do. Beating the All Blacks is something that few teams will do on current form but for England to have something to gloat about we need to beat them in their own back yard, something that hasn't been done since 2009 by the French.
On another note, Robshaw needs to man up. If the criticism hurts that much you need to step down as a captain. You didn't hear Moody, Corry, Johnson, Vickery, Wilkinson or Robinson moaning. Yes you made some poor decisions in the Autumn Internationsal and I fear you will make many more. If this is the strength of our leader to say that the pen puhing journo's hurt his delicate feelings then I'm sorry but step aside and let someone else take the role and we can repalce you with a decent back row of Croft, Morgan and Wood with Kivesic on the bench.
Posted 10:26 23rd January 2013
craigsman says...
FISH - What Robshaw said: "But the win against New Zealand has gone, now it's about the Six Nations."
There you go, I've spelled it out for you. He has moved on and is looking forwards to his next games whilst reflecting on his last. Maybe you should move on too.
Posted 10:14 23rd January 2013
lawynd says...
Are the Kiwis ever going to stop harping on about Wayne Barnes or 'Suzie', Fish? That's pretty sad, from supporters of the team ranked number one in the world. Robshaw isn't gloating or waxing lyrical about it, merely explaining how he felt in the context of the autumn series in general. Is it the fact that you lost to England that makes you a bit precious about it?
Also, get your tenses correct.
Posted 10:00 23rd January 2013
LondonWasp says...
@FISH
well considering England hasn't played an international match since NZ, there is little to talk about until 2nd Feb
Posted 09:53 23rd January 2013
rugby_rockstar says...
Seriously though, what did Robshaw expect from the Press? Forget the Press, they've all got their santimonius faces jammed up each other's backsides anyway. Now there's an image for you to mull over next time you read a newpaper.
Posted 09:40 23rd January 2013
jamesliveinhope says...
@FISH quite a positive thing to not let go though.
Maybe we should cling on to "that forward pass" or "that poisoning" or "that Wayne Barnes"
As an England fan, I'm not stupid enough to believe that a single victory makes us RWC winner designates and there is always that nagging doubt that the result really was to do with the enforced weakness of the opposition. So I am hanging on to nothing.
But the article was about Robshaw's personal challenges over a specific autumn series that included a record victory over the reigning world champions, world number 1 and arguably the best team that has ever taken to a rugby field. I think its would be a little churlish to expect him not to mention it.
After all, its not like the Australia or SA results were ignored.
Posted 09:32 23rd January 2013
ArmchairGeneral says...
Id like him to say from the Autumn that 1 game out of 3 home games is simply not good enough. We have to Consistently win games, especially at home if we want to win any tournaments.
Posted 09:07 23rd January 2013
FISH says...
i've got a feeling the english will never let go of thier victory over new zealand.....a hundred years ago fans will be sitting in a dreary bar talking about the time they beat new zealand kinda sad really
Posted 08:33 23rd January 2013