George Ford has revealed he has been seeking inspiration for England’s World Cup opener against Tonga on Sunday by watching highlights of the men’s football team’s victory over Argentina at the same stadium in 2002.
Seventeen years ago David Beckham completed his World Cup redemption story by scoring the winning penalty against Argentina, four years after being sent off against the same opponents. Against Tonga Ford and co will hope to take the first step towards redeeming themselves in similar fashion, having limped out of a disastrous home World Cup in 2015.
England face Tonga at the Sapporo Dome, a futuristic stadium which hosts baseball, where the grass pitch will be wheeled in from outside for this match. While temperatures in Sapporo are far cooler than at England’s pre-tournament base in Miyazaki, conditions at pitch level are expected to be humid under the roof and Eddie Jones has been preparing his side for a wall of noise.
“I searched that [football match] earlier in the week,” said Ford. “Someone said England football played here in 2002 – I was nine I think. I don’t remember watching it, but looking back I remember it now. I think they were wearing red that day and Beckham scored the penalty – so that’s pretty cool knowing they played there.
“What a brilliant place to go and play in. The pitch is unbelievable. And [the stands are] very steep, so I’d expect the atmosphere to be pretty special. There’s not much wind so there’s no excuses for us kickers. For a game where both teams would want to attack and score some tries – we want to defend well, of course we do – but it’s going to be perfect conditions for that.”
Jones revealed he has picked the brains of members of that England football side in order to help his players cope with the unique stadium. “We spoke to them and spoke about their experience at the ground,” said Jones. “That all went into our preparation and planning for this game.”
