Read your analysis on rugby rebels peat, very enjoyable.
Having done all that, how do you feel about most folks over there scoring Hask with around 4/10, Harrison 6-7, and Clifford 7-8?
It seems rather harsh to me, especially when considering the lack of tackles and missed tackles (the try!) from Clifford, and 5 pens from Harrison.
They're wrong.
Hask had a quiet but solid match. A couple of "Oh Hask" moments, but mainly when outnumbered, and a few noteworthy contributions, particularly in being first man to the ruck. I suspect he'd have the highest tackle of the 3 if he'd played the full 80. Carried okay around the fringes - he's one of a number of England players who goes high to try and win the collision and drive on rather than low and through the gap, which doesn't work too well, but Hask makes it work better than most.
Clifford I think is getting seriously overegged. He was very reliable on taking the restart, performed well at the base and made a couple of electric breaks, but he was part of several bits of sloppy play and if someone was to rate his game as ball in hand/not ball in hand, I think I'd say 8 and 4. Which averages at 6 - feels harsh considering two really big contributions, but the nuts and bolts matter. His carrying apart from those breaks was decent-good rather than good-great for me.
Harrison is the interesting one. 5 penalties should see you dangling by your toes on a long rope as the tide comes up the Thames. He made a few other mistakes too - not playing to the whistle and killing Liam Williams when he had the chance, jogging past a ruck we were losing on their 5m line (Clifford did that too... actually twice sort of), and that godawful pass from the base (probably the worst pass made by anyone in an England shirt all game). But - he worked hard, and showed some good alertness around the ruck. Also, he made several good busts through their defensive line. I like how he knows to go low and quick when facing forwards, but that he can go high and dominate the collision and keep going against Rhys Priestland.
Sharpen up Harrison's brain a little and he's a good to go. Jack Clifford clearly could be one of the England greats, but needs to pick up his all round game a lot. I thought Jones was joshing a little when he was asking Clifford to go out there and prove his desperation but now I understand. No England back row should be content to only make three tackles. He's possibly a little unlucky to find himself on undermanned blindsides twice - but then, you've got to realise that's where you are, and you've got to be screaming blue murder at the other guys. Understandable lapse in a newbie perhaps, but its still either something you get right or watch others do from the stands.
Jones might disagree, but Clifford's no more than a wonder sub at the moment. I actually wish he was in South Africa rather than Australia now, you could give him 2 full games against a big Bok pack and tell him he's the captain, lead by example, be everywhere. That would do more necessary development than sub minutes in Australia.
