Stuart Lancaster happy with players after tour – Rugby News Update
Stuart Lancaster, the head coach of England, is pleased with his players after the southern hemisphere tour, and relished the chance of working with all of them.
Lancaster took a 42-man squad to South Africa for a three-match test series, along with playing two other midweek games. He was able to fully utilize his squad for the 5 games, and believes that his players conducted themselves admirably, even though England
lost the series.
"It has been a fantastic opportunity to take a wider group of players and work with them," Lancaster said. "That has been the real benefit of the tour, getting a real understanding of the strengths and areas we need to look at to go forward.”
Lancaster was appointed as an interim coach following the 2011 Rugby World Cup. His first assignment as coach was the 2012 Six Nations Grand Slam, where England came second behind Wales. He was given further charge of the team for the tour of South Africa.
Lancaster has inculcated a new culture in the England team, with winning being at the forefront of it. He has introduced young players into the squad, appointed a new captain, and is building the side from scratch in order to compete at the 2015 World Cup.
Lancaster believes that the early signs augur well for the future.
Rugby Football Union chief executive Ian Ritchie is also pleased with the team, and Lancaster's work. However, he has laid down the gauntlet and has clarified that complacency will not be accepted.
We start off from a presumption we want to win every game and we look at what happened during the tour on that basis," he said. "That said, I think that we achieved a lot. Yesterday's performance was a committed one, to come here and get a draw - history
proves how difficult it is to come here and win.”
Even though England lost the series 2 – 0, it is never easy to win against southern hemisphere opponents in their own backyard. They were able to draw the last test, and most importantly the players will grow with the experience.
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