No matter what Ireland threw at them, the All Blacks were more than willing to fight back en route to a famous victory. Credit : Getty Images/Aurélien Meunier
Inspiration for England to get over the line in their Euro qualifying campaign came from an unlikely source last weekend as Gareth Southgate's side were captivated by watching the All Blacks defend with their lives at the Rugby World Cup.
Southgate himself switched from New Zealand during his seven years as manager, using his ritual of having a former player present debutants with a shirt in the dressing room. He previously worked with Owen Eastwood, who was an adviser to the New Zealanders, and there is a similar «no jerks» regime.
As the All Blacks managed to defend their lead against Ireland on Saturday, Southgate players watched the match on screens at the Tottenham training ground where they were based. A day later came South Africa's thrilling victory over France.
Those ruthless performances were absorbed by the players who battled to win against Italy on Tuesday and book their place at the Euros in Germany next year, where Southgate's side will be looking to take the next step and win the trophy they have come so close to winning for two years. back.
“I'm not really the biggest rugby fan, but the games I watched last night were exciting,” said Declan Rice. “I think you can see towards the end Ireland had about 35 attacks in the last wave and New Zealand was on the line. We can learn from this, although it is a different sport. We can learn from the fact that it is about leaving everything aside.
“The top teams like South Africa and Ireland are gone, but they are the number one team in the world, New Zealand. It's thinking about getting over the line. This is what we are now starting to achieve. We have all the talent, but it's about the mindset and determination to be the best and win.
Jude Bellingham and company will go to Germany next summer, confident that they can leave the trophy. Photo: Getty Images/Alex Panting
“If you want to win, you have to do everything mentally and physically. All the substitutes who entered the field all knew their roles. There was a lot of inspiration, especially from our England team, who have been written off a lot, and they also show a lot of fight and character. Of course, there is a lot to learn from other sports.”
With a «no fools» policy in mind, Southgate has often spoken about having the right characters in his team. James Maddison was praised for going to the World Cup and not letting his own injury disappointment affect the group. Aaron Ramsdale is also singled out as a player who puts the team before himself.
Rice even cleaned the dressing room at West Ham, although the inspiration for this was Mark Noble. He says that England left their country immaculate after defeating Italy.
“You might have one or two, but we don’t have one,” Rice said. “Guys… I just played against City at the weekend and I probably spent most of the time on this trip with the City guys.”
“He [Southgate] is talking about the All Blacks. Previously, people came to us for negotiations. Not just the All Blacks. England and also South Africa. How to cross the line. How to act differently and how to have that mindset: “We won’t get beaten.” Despite everything». As I said, there are lessons to be learned from other sports and we are trying to do that here with England.”
After reaching the Euro final last time out, England's goal now that they have qualified is to bring home the trophy.
“We must be calm in this matter, but there is one goal — to win on foreign soil. We have enough winners in the group and the mentality is amazing, but it's up to us. We can talk about it as much as we can, but we as players know that it's time to step up,” he said.
“There's no need to be afraid. We went to Naples and won in Italy for the first time in a long time. We beat Italy at Wembley after they beat us at the last Euro. Great performances.
“Even though we were eliminated at the World Cup, it felt like we took another step in the way we played against France. We lost in the Euro final. I think the main thing is that we all get a little older, we all get a little more mature. The band are performing amazing.
“By the time the Euros come, I hope we'll all have a good moment. Everyone is so happy. We then simply said that we didn’t really want to go home. We love coming here. The next camp is in three weeks, we are all looking forward to getting there again. We know that next summer we have the chance to do something that no English team has ever done before. This is a big goal and a great desire for us.”
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