England‘s Blackett prioritizes Winning Over “Funky Rugby”
LONDON – Incoming England coach Lee Blackett has stated his primary focus will be on securing victories,not implementing a stylistic “funky rugby” approach. Blackett emphasized he will prioritize tactics that yield results,adapting to opponents to gain an advantage. “I’ll be doing whatever I feel is best to win us the game.I’ll be looking at the opposition and where I feel we can get an advantage. If you think that’s funky … I just want something that works to win us the game,” he said.
The comments come as England navigates a competition for the fly-half position, with George Ford, Fin Smith, and Marcus Smith vying for the starting jersey. Owen Farrell remains an option, currently awaiting his opportunity. Blackett highlighted the importance of strong players at the number 10 position, stating, “Any attack coach or head coach always wants one key thing: make sure you’ve got good 10s because they make such a big difference.” He believes the competition between the three contenders will ultimately elevate their performance. “We’re really lucky. A couple of the guys are going to be disappointed but, for me, having three of them competing is going to make them better. They’re all going to have to be at their best.”
In separate news, Leicester’s recently appointed defense coach, Mike Forshaw, has departed his role at the Tigers due to personal family reasons.
