![\"England's](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/\/a9531ab5-f758-441f-af3c-c2557d30ea6f.jpg\")
<\/p>\nWith Bayonne on a week off in the Top 14, Manu Tuilagi was at Twickenham on Saturday to watch England\u2019s victory over New Zealand and earn a few quid on the corporate circuit. \u201cDo you miss being out there?\u201d he was asked. Tuilagi enjoyed two landmark days against the All Blacks, when England beat them at home in 2012 and in the World Cup semi-final in 2019. Now 34, Tuilagi held up his drink and cracked a joke about being quite happy where he was, thank you very much.<\/p>\n
Almost all of England\u2019s best performances over the course of a decade or more came with Tuilagi as the midfield spearhead. Graham Rowntree, England\u2019s former forwards coach, once joked that Mike Catt\u2019s job running the attack was easy. The game plan, he said, was just, \u201cGive it to Manu.\u201d Without Tuilagi, England have struggled to find the right blend in their midfield combination. <\/p>\n
Steve Borthwick, England\u2019s head coach, persisted for a long time with Ollie Lawrence and Henry Slade, which should have worked on paper, but they lacked chemistry. Lawrence was shoehorned in as a power runner at inside centre, with Slade brought back to run the blitz defence that became the core of England\u2019s identity after the 2023 World Cup. There were signs against the All Blacks that England have struck upon the right formula by reuniting two former under-20 team-mates. <\/p>\n
Lawrence, 26, is now at outside centre, which allows him to express his full range of skills as an attacking threat: his physicality, footwork and handling skills. All three were to the fore against the All Blacks. Alongside him was Fraser Dingwall, also 26, who enjoyed a statement performance of his own.<\/p>\n
It was Dingwall\u2019s seventh cap but the first time he felt like he properly belonged in an England jersey; a confidence that translated into his performance, having been instilled in him by Lee Blackett, the new attack coach whose imprint on this team has been rapid. <\/p>\n
On the summer tour to Argentina and the United States, England scored 13 tries in three Tests. With a young team marshalled by the fly half, George Ford, there was a zip and sharpness to England\u2019s attack. Seb Atkinson emerged as a long-term option at inside centre with his powerful carries, huge engine and nice hands; only to be ruled out of the autumn series.<\/p>\n
Although England have not quite replicated the clinical rugby of the summer throughout this November campaign, there was a step up on Saturday. England were below their average for entries into the opposition 22, but above average in their conversion rate. They scored four tries and 33 points, their most against the All Blacks since Tuilagi ran riot in 2012.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Blackett sees his ability to instil confidence in players as one of the hallmarks of his coaching<\/p>\n
BOB BRADFORD \u2013 CAMERASPORT VIA GETTY IMAGES<\/p>\n
Blackett had challenged England to score one try from a strike play and they created two. Lawrence scored the first from a scrum and then supplied the assist for Dingwall to run in England\u2019s third try as they launched from a lineout. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe great thing about Lee since he\u2019s come in, he\u2019s made us really aggressive with our strike attack,\u201d Ford, 32, said. \u201cIt\u2019s to go and score. It\u2019s never to set up. You want to have options to go and break the line straight away. It makes a big difference. He\u2019s amazing at detail and thinking a little bit differently outside the box. Little intricacies which make a big difference at times.\u201d<\/p>\n
Blackett once heard James Haskell, a former player of his at Wasps, say that his greatest quality as a coach was instilling confidence in players. It was not something Blackett, 42, had really considered until he heard Haskell talk about it. Now he sees it as a hallmark of his coaching. <\/p>\n
\u201cI want players running out confident,\u201d he said. \u201cI want players running out there going, \u2018This coach backs me, if I see something, he backs me.\u2019 \u201d<\/p>\n
For Dingwall\u2019s try, he and Lawrence switched roles. It was a decision the centres made between them after spotting the opportunity at a previous lineout. Lawrence attracted two defenders and slipped a late ball to Dingwall.<\/p>\n
![\"Two](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/\/667df25f-039c-4e2d-b5f3-cf9d05f333e0.jpg\")
<\/p>\n