By the end of last year’s Six Nations, George Ford had played a total of 24 minutes for England across the entire championship.
He had not been injured, just overlooked for selection until the final game, when England travelled to Cardiff and thrashed Wales 68-14, with Ford coming off the bench in the second half.
That was less than a year ago, and at the time Ford was viewed as practically a player-coach - a veteran on the training pitch who could help to bring through two exciting young prospects in Fin Smith and Marcus Smith, but whose opportunities for more Test caps appeared limited.
Now, the 32-year-old fly-half feels practically undroppable. The summer tour during a British and Irish Lions year is often a time for coaches to test out younger players and see whether they can be big-match contributors moving forward, with Guy Pepper a good example having gone from prospect to certain starter after his performances in Argentina.
In Ford’s case, while the two Smiths were away in Australia, he grabbed his chance and locked down the No10 shirt for the foreseeable future.
The first two tries in Henry Arundell’s 35-minute hat-trick were laid on a plate by moments of brilliance from player of the match Ford, with the first surpassing the second.
The precision of his flat pass, fizzed past three other England attackers in a gap of about only 10 metres to find the winger, was exceptional and almost impossible to defend from a Welsh perspective.
England internally revere Ford for his leadership abilities, but in the past nine months his play has matched those high standards
Wales were on the ropes down to 13 players and facing a scrum five metres from their line before Arundell’s second try, but the execution of Ford’s kick-pass to the wing, drifting away from the Welsh defenders to give Arundell acres of room to score, was also excellent.
England internally revere Ford for his leadership abilities, but in the past nine months his play has matched those high standards.
“A brilliant player, an outstanding leader and an even better person” was how Steve Borthwick summed Ford up in November after his display against the All Blacks, when he buried the demons of his missed match-winning drop-goal attempt against New Zealand from 2024.
There will be games where England have to kick more than they did here and Ford's ability in that area will be even more valuable.
This was more of a passing exhibition, on a day when England blew Wales out of the water so effectively through their pack in the opening exchanges that they could afford to lose momentum and be a little sloppy in the second half.
Listening to Borthwick afterwards, there were signs in training that a top-tier performance was coming from his fly-half.
“On Tuesday this week, I stopped training for a moment because George Ford had just had this incredible moment of physicality which led to an opportunity for Jamie George to create an incredible turnover,” he said.
“The two most senior players in the squad, training at that level, with youngsters like Henry Pollock bringing the energy they bring, that’s a great mix to have.”
How much credit you give England is difficult given the quality of the opposition - Wales face a mountain of problems off the field, with the reduction in the regions, and a significant chunk on the field as well - but the manner of England’s start will please Borthwick immensely, given starting fast has not always been a strength.
They physically bullied Wales into giving up two yellow cards within a matter of minutes in the first half. This was going to be a challenge for Wales even at full strength, but fighting out of a 15 against 13 deficit always felt insurmountable.
“We let ourselves down, let people down,” said their captain Dewi Lake, a fine player and leader currently having to carry out an impossible job.
“We spoke all week about what we were going to produce and we didn’t do it. There is no other way to say it – we are massively disappointed with what we put on the field today.”
England, meanwhile, will be pleased by Arundell’s hat-trick, obviously, but more importantly by his improving defensive and high-ball abilities.
If Arundell is to win a permanent starting spot then matching the level of his outstanding finishing ability by being reliable in those areas feels essential.
“What I have been really impressed with over the last number of months is his attitude to go and improve other aspects of his game,” Borthwick explained.
“He has gone away post the autumn and worked exceptionally hard on some other areas and has come back to the Six Nations an even better player.”
Prospects improving and veterans, like Ford, in career-best form. Add in a 48-7 win, securing a 12th straight Test victory, and England are in a good place.
