Steve Borthwick: Marcus Smith will 'learn lessons' after missed kicks in England's defeat to New Zealand
Published 08/07/2024 at 14:45 GMT+1
Plenty of scrutiny has been placed upon Marcus Smith after missing several kicking chances in England's first Test defeat to the All Blacks in Dunedin last Saturday. England head coach Steve Borthwick was understandably focused on looking ahead, as they prepare for the second Test in Auckland this Saturday.
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England head coach Steve Borthwick says Marcus Smith will “learn lessons” after several missed opportunities in a keenly-contested 16-15 first Test defeat to New Zealand.
Smith missed three kicks that would have ended a 21-year wait for an England win away at New Zealand, ahead of the second and final Test in Dunedin on Saturday.
Despite the setback, Borthwick is backing the Harlequins man to come back stronger.
“We can’t do anything about the past," said Borthwick in quotes published by the Guardian.
“I don’t want the players to dwell. As a player I used to look back a lot [but] as a coach I want the players to learn lessons then move on very fast. That’s what Marcus will do and that’s what all the players will do.
“Damian McKenzie missed some kicks as well and he is an incredible goal-kicker. It happens. Marcus produced some moments of absolute class as well. That is what he can do. He put Manny Feyi-Waboso in for his try and he was excellent in so many different ways. I thought he defended tough as well – and you have to defend tough against New Zealand.
“Goal-kickers of both teams missed shots yesterday. Marcus is an excellent goal-kicker, as is Fin Smith, as is Henry Slade. We can all say if we’d kicked those goals – but there were chances we didn’t take and chances we gave them that we shouldn’t have done. There will be a whole host of things to improve on.
"The level of contest at the breakdown in New Zealand, for example, is higher than anywhere else in the world. Sometimes players need to experience that; I think we will be better for that experience.”
The scrum area will be another key one for improvement on Saturday, with Borthwick forced to reshuffle his pack due to Joe Marler's foot injury.
This has prompted a call being made to Northampton's Emmanuel Iyogun to link up with the squad as additional cover.
“They certainly had the better of the scrums last night, it is one of those areas we will address with the players,” Borthwick added.
“The best two scrums in the world are South Africa and New Zealand. We rank just behind them.”
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“We were not necessarily in full control but we felt we had a strong handle on the game,” said Maro Itoje, who was among England’s standout players despite a heavy playing workload this season.
“There was probably a time period from 60-70 minutes where our intensity dropped and they just nipped ahead. This team is moving in the right direction; there is lots to be positive about.”
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