What is Rugby?

A player with enough substance to finally replace Wilkinson in the English squad

Ever since kicking the over-time drop-goal to win the 2003 Rugby World Cup, England’s superstar fly-half and all-around rugby poster boy Johnny Wilkinson has suffered not less than a dozen major injuries at the test and club level. The steadfast belief of fans, pundits and coaches in the return of their messiah has essentially left the #10 position unfilled for nearly half-a-decade.

At the 2008 Six Nations, we were introduced to a young debutant Danny Cipriani who led England to a 33-10 victory over Ireland at Twickenham following a mostly disappointing campaign. To be clear, Cipriani played brilliantly that day and it was easy to draw comparisons to a young Wilkinson. The fans and media gushed over this daring darling of rugby and a new dawn for England surely had risen.

Unfortunately, this is where the fairy tale ends. Following injury and a string of poor performances, Cipriani has been relegated to the Saxons for the 2009 Six Nations campaign with little hope of being recalled to the national squad anytime soon.

England meanwhile appear to have finally found a man to lead England back from a progressive slide down the IRB rankings. Andy Goode has been an exciting and creative leader in the first two matches of the 2009 campaign. He is solid with ball-in-hand, kicks well, is a ferocious defender and leads by example.

Despite Goode’s performance, some still pine for the Wilkinson days it seems. Martin Johnson replaced Goode on Saturday after he received a yellow card for not releasing in the tackle on the 2 metre line. Forget the fact that the referee was appropriately strict on the England team for numerous intentional penalties by Goode’s teammates. Forget the fact that England scored short-handed during another yellow-card incident in the first half. Even forget the fact that Goode’s replacement Toby Flood leads his teammates about as well as a wet noodle.

The only reasons I can see for Johnson to replace Goode is to either (i) give the appearance of being a strict coach or (ii) to remind the team that the number 10 shirt still belongs to Wilkinson. After all, some say Wilkinson will be playing until he’s 40. Perhaps Johnson is keeping the door open for this possibility.

But lets get real. Flood may never be ready for England at the Test level despite an adequate performance on Saturday. Cipriani is too inconsistent. Wilkinson is a bleeder and his recent philosophical ‘experiment’ does not bode well for his competitive spirit.

On the other hand, Goode has paid his dues, is not (yet) injury prone, and is quietly confident. He deserves the chance to show that he can lead England as he has done these last two weekends. He may not be able to walk on water or whip the media into a frenzy, but I think it’s about time we get behind a player of substance and look toward the 2011 Rugby World Cup.