The Reasons Fin Smith Represents The National Team's Number One Fly-Half

Fin Smith during play
  • Published
    1 hour ago
  • 98 Comments

In expert analysis, Fin Smith has shown why he deserves the starting position for the national team's number ten versus the All Blacks on Saturday.

Fin Smith delivered arguably the best defensive performance we have seen by an English playmaker for quite some time.

How he fronted up by consistently making his tackles versus a physical Fijian team stood out remarkably.

His game management proved exceptional - he showed an excellent balance of skill and control, and made several crucial choices during moments were not going as expected in the first half.

Tackling Prowess Coupled with Tactical Command

His ability to calm the squad tactically and make big calls represents an aspect he has truly nailed.

In my opinion, Fin Smith is England's primary fly-half and deserves to start versus the All Blacks this weekend.

I believe the manager the England coach views it that way too, since Smith has proven his capability during important Test matches.

Squad Decisions and Competition

The experienced fly-half started last Saturday against Australia for leadership considerations, with some aspect of that choice aimed at ensuring continuity while acknowledging his performance during the visit to South America.

However, the national team's performance versus the Pacific Islanders was a significant step up from the performance against Australia.

Australia lost on Italian soil on Saturday, so we should avoid becoming overly excited about that victory, that could have been by a larger margin given how off the pace Australia were.

Fiji, by contrast, proved significantly threatening while offering a much more difficult test.

Future Prospects

Fin Smith is still only twenty-three - looking ahead 24 months, with Ford challenging him but also offering backup, I believe Fin will be in a very strong place in his career.

The Harlequins star must also be considered as an option at the right time and against the right opposition.

He's progressing in his career and is starting to find his feet, but he also needs the freedom to show his distinctive attributes.

Substitute Influence

New Zealand introduced their impact player, who scored the decisive try defeating the Scottish team, and that shows the importance of possessing individuals who can make a real impact as substitutes.

Such type of player can be the deciding factor between winning the global tournament or not.

McKenzie observes the match develop from the bench while considering about how to create a difference upon entering.

His decision-making and mistake frequency have enhanced substantially since his early professional days.

Role Discussion

Should we develop Marcus to be that kind of impactful player, including him in the backfield might prove beneficial.

However, currently I don't think Marcus represents the solution at full-back, making it a role remaining up for grabs.

New Zealand are likely to punt testing England's defensive line, therefore it must to be impenetrable.

This role that needs to become a real strength, in defense while regarding of the counter-attack danger.

Currently, I believe Marcus is a full-back in top-tier rugby.

I find it difficult to see the benefit fielding him in that position.

I want possession in his hands as much as possible, but I believe that should be in the front line, particularly during the last 20 minutes.

Innate Qualities

Clearly there exist a lot of similarities between Ford with Smith.

Fin has the capacity executing right decisions during tense moments - his natural reactions are not something you can really coach.

I remember as he received the ball at one stage just inside his territory appearing like it could be should they swung it wide.

But in those milliseconds he calculated they needed to turn Fiji round since England were leading points-wise, so he kicked it to pin them back applying pressure.

This represents the type of playmaking that wins championships and wins World Cups.

Complete Package

He also has that calmness during intensity directing the players around him, while recognizing that he doesn't always need as primary option.

I want to see him receiving the chance demonstrating this at elite level next week, similar to the veteran do, especially at domestic matches repeatedly consistently.

In Argentina, Ford similarly excelled in difficult circumstances, where historically you could argue there have been times he has not quite done so during extremely tense matches.

I believe we have two fly-halves who can do the job, though Smith's defence on top of everything else, it makes him the more complete versatile player.

Defensive System

This also indicates you don't have to modify your defensive system when you have an assertive player occupying the playmaker position, rather than someone who is a little more passive.

You could also present compelling arguments for Ford starting with Smith coming off the bench.

There are so many considerations occurring behind closed doors, but whichever way the coaches choose to proceed, this will present the opponents difficulties.

This hasn't consistently represented the situation against the All Blacks, where the focus was simply on selecting the optimal individual.

On this occasion, whichever fly-half selected can put New Zealand under real pressure.

Fin's ability to pick the right kick while delivering enabling possible 50-20 can take all the stress off England.

Aaron Garcia
Aaron Garcia

Marcus Thorne is a UK-based business strategist with over 15 years of experience in digital transformation and enterprise consulting.