'A matter of time': Lee Blackett backed to shape England into a potent attack

Not even the fact England scored seven tries in a 45-22 dismantling of the Wallabies on Sunday has put the concerns to bed, with the national team’s alarming performance in the Six Nations - in which they scored just 14 tries in four successive defeats - still hanging over the set-up.

Former Leeds Carnegie back and Rotherham Titans head coach Blackett has been England attack coach since last August, when he was plucked from Bath whose offence he transformed into one of the most potent in club rugby.

And it is another former Bath winger, Anthony Watson, who believes England are starting to see the hallmarks of Blackett’s influence on Borthwick’s side.

“It's dangerous to read too much into the article about Lee Blackett and how much involvement he has,” warned Watson, speaking to The Yorkshire Post via Grosvenor Casino.

“Steve Borthwick would never have brought Lee in if he didn't think he could have a significant impact on the attack, so there's never been a case of Lee not having enough say.

“The Six Nations is a different competition by nature; those games are a little more combative and attritional, which doesn't always lend itself to showing off your attacking style.

“While I'm not making excuses for England's attacking intent in the Six Nations last season - direct comparisons between the two aren't entirely fair.

“The longer Lee is in that position, the better England's attack will get.

“It points towards the players having a greater understanding of what Lee wants, so it's simply a matter of time in the saddle.”

And if Sunday’s performance is anything to go by, Blackett has the tools at his disposal to make England purr on the pitch.

“Part of the reason England started that game so well was because Immanuel Feyi-Waboso and Tommy Freeman had a lot of touches on the ball in the first half,” continued Watson.

“You want your game breakers involved as much as possible. Every time Manny touched the ball, he looked like something might happen. He wasn't just on his wing; he was on the left, the right, and in the middle.”

With rugby union’s new poster boy Henry Pollock scoring two second-half tries, England have got an x-factor player to frighten the southern hemisphere heavyweights.

Watson added: “I honestly think Henry Pollock is the best thing that's happened to rugby in this country for the last five or ten years. He divides opinion and polarizes people's thoughts on how rugby should be, but love him or hate him, you're going to watch him play. That's brilliant for the game.

“People debate whether showboating or celebrating is a good thing, but it keeps the conversation on rugby. He's got the physical attributes to mix it on the wing if he needs to, as does Ben Earl. When you look at 33-man World Cup squads and how hard international rugby is now, having players who can jump between the forwards and the backs is huge.”

Today’s Nations Championship clash with Japan brings a reunion Eddie Jones, who was the head coach of England for the second half of Watson’s international career.

England are heavy favourites to win and then need to beat New Zealand at Twickenham next Saturday to have any chance of overhauling France at the top of the northern hemisphere standings and reaching the final back in London the following week.

France played South Africa last night and finish against Argentina.

But Watson is urging England not to look beyond Japan and a head coach who would love nothing more than to poop the party.

“Eddie Jones will love it. He would love nothing better than being the first Japan coach to win at Twickenham,” said Watson.

“He's been in charge of some monumental underdog moments.

“I remember him being incredibly precise and clear on what was expected of the collective, which made us really tight as a group.

“I didn't see enough from Japan against Wales to think they're going to put on a show at Twickenham. But with Eddie, I wouldn’t be surprised to see a trick or a loophole.”