The England attack coach, Richard Wigglesworth, has said entertainment does not come into his thinking when plotting the World Cup campaign. Wigglesworth is full of admiration how Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum have cultivated an environment of freedom of expression in England’s Test cricket side, but when it comes to Steve Borthwick’s squad a premium will be placed on results.
Borthwick succeeded Eddie Jones nine months before England begin their World Cup campaign and after a disappointing Six Nations campaign with two victories Wigglesworth has prioritised winning with four warmup matches this summer.
“The beauty about rugby is there are loads of different ways to do it,” he said. “If we all try to play the same way it soon wouldn’t be entertaining. We want to be tactically flexible. Does the word ‘entertainment’ come into my thinking when I am planning? No. It is the best way to play. The best way to play and attack will end up being entertaining.
“Are there games where you have to bring a different blend, are there games that are ugly at times? [Look at] South Africa v Wales, the semi-final of the World Cup that no one talks about because [South Africa] played brilliantly in the final. There are games you have to go and win a different way and I want us to be able to do that and make sure when the time is right we move the ball as well as anyone.”
Addressing the Ashes, where Stokes and co are 2-0 down after two Tests despite their aggressive approach, Wigglesworth said he was eager to pick the brains of his cricketing counterparts. “It is interesting,” he said. “It’s funny because they’ve been lauded, then they lose two games in an Ashes series and there are questions. That’s sport and that’s why you have to try to do what you can to win.
‘I’m really interested in the environment where they look like they’ve got there where players can go out and express themselves and be happy. That is certainly something we want to do. We want players to enjoy being part of this England squad. We are really conscious of that. Maybe with this rose on my chest now, I might be able to visit a few places and pick their brains.”
Wigglesworth is England’s fourth attack coach since the 2019 World Cup, replacing Nick Evans who held the role during the Six Nations. As a result, Wigglesworth has a limited time-frame with which to impart his ideas but, having worked under Borthwick at Leicester, the 40-year-old former scrum-half is confident England will click at the World Cup.
“We are aiming to have the best plan for the players we’ve got,” he said. “We will attack well. We don’t want to be passive with the attack, we want to go and make sure we cause some problems.”
