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England evolve

Sky Sports rugby union writer Tony Curtis looks back at Stuart Lancaster's first 12 months as England head coach

When Stuart Lancaster walked into West Park Leeds RUFC to address the media in January 2012, there was a feeling this was a new dawn for England rugby.

Honeymoon

It hasn't all been perfect for Lancaster during that time but rather than get beaten down by the mistakes, he and his side have looked to constantly learn and evolve. Finishing second in last season's Six Nations - with tough away wins in Scotland and Italy and memorable wins over France and Ireland - helped secure Lancaster the position on a permanent basis. However the honeymoon appeared to be over during the summer tour to South Africa as England lost the first two Tests to the Springboks - with mistakes dogging the visitors. A gutsy 14-14 draw in the third Test restored some of the goodwill but autumn Tests provided a new challenge. England opened with a convincing win over Fiji - although they were far from perfect - but hopes were high they could then beat Australia, who arrived at Twickenham on the back of a heavy defeat to France. It wasn't to be as England's decision-making was called into question during the loss. The pressure was cranked up a notch as the Boks secured victory in the next Test. Importantly, though, despite the final scorelines - and headlines - England hadn't played badly and there were clear signs of improvement. But with the All Blacks - unbeaten since before the 2011 World Cup - next up, it did look as if England would finish the autumn Tests with a 1-3 record.
Evolution
However, England proved they are heading in the right direction as they recorded an historic 38-21 success. There is no doubt that the feel-good factor from that game will have helped Lancaster when he faced the press again - but his policy of holding an off-the record briefing allows him to explain his policies. With one of his trusted lieutenants at his side - this time it was Andy Farrell, while 12 months ago it was Graham Rowntree - Lancaster was able to spell out the plans and discuss tactics before revealing his squads for the coming year. Both Farrell and Lancaster put forward some interesting points and the signs are encouraging for the long-term future. Ultimately, the foundations have been put in place over the past 12 months, with England now looking to build on those. The youngsters - such as Joe Launchbury, Mako Vunipola and Freddie Burns - who were blooded in the autumn, retain their places. And while the EPS selections will not have been met with the same fanfare as in 2012, the inclusion of Billy Vunipola as injury cover and the call-ups of Joel Tomkins, Elliott Daly and Kyle Eastmond in the Saxons squad shows Lancaster continues to have one eye on the future. And evolution, rather than revolution appears to be the new mantra for England.

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