Gerry Thornley: England asking for trouble if they are putting hopes on Ford’s shoulders

Watching George Ford go through the horrors in the Stade de France on Saturday, while Freddie Michalak steered the home side to a psychologically important win, perhaps acted as a reminder that, to paraphrase Alan Hansen, you can't win anything with kids. Or, at any rate, a team has a better chance of winning a World Cup with an experienced outhalf.

The 22-year-old Ford is an exceptional talent, assuredly a more natural and complete outhalf than Owen Farrell or even Jonny Wilkinson, if perhaps not yet having the latter's mental strength.

Ford showed in the last 15 minutes in Paris that when his pack is generating front-foot ball, he has an exceptional ability to take the ball to the line and pick the right pass, as well as having a running threat of his own. Perhaps the introduction of Danny Cipriani as an alternative playmaker also helped Ford, as England backs coach Mike Catt did with Wilkinson during the 2003 World Cup, when Wilkinson's nerves appeared to become frayed by all the responsibility on his young shoulders.

As outlined by Johnny Watterson in these pages on Saturday, Wilkinson settled down to become a points machine in the knockout stages, accounting for 62 of England’s 72 points in three games, as well as emerging as the final match-winner.

Debut

But although Wilkinson was only two years older in 2003 than Ford is now, Wilkinson had been playing Test rugby since making his debut in 1998 against Ireland at Lansdowne Road at the age of 18. Wilkinson went into the 2003 World Cup with 49 caps to his name; Ford was only introduced to Test rugby in March of last year when making his debut against Wales.

Last Saturday, he won only his 12th cap, and it’s instructive to note that eight of his previous 11 caps had been earned at Twickenham. Watching him get his wires crossed, mis-hit restarts and misdirect kicks out of hand, he suddenly looked what he is – an inexperienced if gifted 22-year-old outhalf. Admittedly, he won’t have to play away from home again between now and the end of the World Cup, but England would be better placed if Ford was another two years older and had at least another 15 caps under his belt.

Outhalf is a position, more than any other perhaps, in which occupants improve with time. When New Zealand won the inaugural World Cup in 1987 there were generally considered to have the best outhalf in the world at the time in Grant Fox. He was only 25 then and three years into his All Blacks career, but they were different times. Granted, he was never known as a particularly effective running outhalf, but like Wilkinson he was a points machine.

Hand on the tiller

Michael Lynagh had been on the losing side in the 1987 semi-final against France but four years later was the hand on the tiller that drove the Wallabies to their 1991 World Cup win. He turned 28 during the 1991 tournament and went into it with 47 caps to his name.

In 1995 Joel Stransky was South Africa’s drop goal match-winner in the final in extra time against the All Blacks. His New Zealand counterpart Andrew Mehrtens was probably the more complete all-round outhalf, and more experienced, while Stransky had only six caps going into that tournament,

But they were exceptional circumstances, given the Springboks had only just been re-admitted to the game, and Stransky was nonetheless a well-travelled 28-year-old by then.

In 1999, Stephen Larkham may only have been competing in his first of three World Cups but he had been playing Test rugby for three years, and had both 25 caps and 25 years to his name. Brilliant at launching those around him, he may not have been noted for his kicking game, but he chose a hell of a moment to land the sole drop goal of his career from 48 metres to beat South Africa in extra time of the semi-final.

Competition

Along came Wilkinson in 2003, and four years later South Africa’s World Cup-winning outhalf was Butch James, who was 28 and came into that competition with 20 caps to his name.

The 2007 World Cup should have been Dan Carter’s tournament, but he went off injured in the quarter-final and the All Blacks lost their way and lost to France without him. It was a similar story four years later, when Carter was struck down doing something he did every day of his life, practising his kicking, and all theories about needing experienced, proven outhalves went out the window.

New Zealand ended up being indebted to a fourth-choice outhalf, Stephen Donald, while their French opponents had a converted scrumhalf, Morgan Parra, in the role.

In 2003, Wilkinson had outplayed Freddy Michalak in the semi-finals, shortly after the French outhalf turned 21.

Michalak went into that tournament with 12 caps, akin to Ford now in profile, and just didn’t have the experience to cope with the downpour on that night in Sydney.

But Michalak, while he may be Toulon’s second-choice outhalf, is a 32-year-old veteran of 72 Tests now and France’s record points scorer, which could yet be a source of comfort for the French

But this is also what gives Ireland hope. Johnny Sexton is a 30-year-old with 54 Tests to his name, including a Test-winning series with the Lions. He has exactly the profile you would wish. Fingers crossed he stays fit and well. gthornley@irishtimes.com