Ben Morgan, England
Old demons would be reawakened come scrum time, England No. 8 Ben Morgan goaded Australia before their Rugby World Cup showdown yesterday.
Morgan wasn’t out of line.
He was banking on England prolonging a long history of traumatizing Australia’s pack.
For example, in 2005 Australia was reduced to uncontested scrums. In 2007, Andrew Sheridan destroyed the Wallabies scrum in the World Cup quarterfinals in Marseille. Not quite a year ago, the England pack forced 13 penalties, and carried Morgan over the line twice for tries in another victory for English muscle.
But that history was consigned to, well, history, as England was mauled up front by Australia 33-13 at Twickenham, and eliminated in the pool stage for the first time.
Wallabies coach Michael Cheika accepted the English had a right to keep on believing their scrum was superior until it was disproved. That day finally arrived, credited to former Argentina scrum master Mario Ledesma, who was one of Cheika’s assistants at the Waratahs, and brought into the Wallabies camp.
“We have been working hard on (scrums),” Cheika said. “Mario taught me scrums are very humbling. You can dominate one but the next one you can get your pants pulled down. You have got to be consistent.”
Australia became consistent the longer the match went.
The demons now live in England minds. Foster Niumata, London, AP
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