England vow to ‘put smiles back on people’s faces’ with positive attacking display against France after they faced criticism for their kicking tactics in the Six Nations defeat by Scotland
- England are on a mission to ‘put smiles back on people’s faces’ against France
- Disappointing defeats by Scotland and Wales prematurely ended a title charge
- Cumbersome kicking tactics fuelled criticism in their two Six Nations defeats
- However, Henry Slade believes England will be more positive at Twickenham
England are on a mission to ‘put smiles back on people’s faces’ with a display of attacking intent against France on Saturday in the Six Nations.
Disappointing defeats by Scotland and Wales prematurely ended England’s title charge with two rounds left to play.
Cumbersome kicking tactics have fuelled criticism, but centre Henry Slade believes England will be more positive at Twickenham on Saturday evening.
England want to ‘put smiles back on people’s faces’ after a disappointing Six Nations campaign
‘We are definitely looking to go as hard as we can these next weeks and put a smile back on people’s faces,’ said Slade. ‘We want everyone to be behind us and we’re working as hard as we can for that.
‘A lot gets said on social media or in the press. We’re quietly confident in what we’re doing. We’ve been frustrated with this tournament because we’ve actually been improving and playing some good stuff.
‘After that Scotland defeat, we had a lot of honest conversations and people said what they wanted to say. We clarified a lot of things and we’ve definitely made a bit of a mindset shift.
Defeats by Scotland and Wales prematurely ended Eddie Jones’ men Six Nations title charge
‘Sometimes our first option was to kick rather than run and we’ve shifted in the right direction in terms of having a more balanced game and wanting to take people on.’
England’s attentions have been focused on improving their discipline for Saturday’s Test.
They are on course for a record penalty haul after giving away 15 in the defeat by Scotland and 14 last time out in their defeat against Wales — but Slade insists they must not move too far away from their physical hallmark.
‘We’ve placed some individual responsibility on discipline,’ said Slade.
‘I know it’s been a bit of a problem for us for a little while and we’ve been genuinely addressing it. But we have to couple that with our intent to attack the game.
However, centre Henry Slade believes England will be more positive at Twickenham vs France
‘We’ve still got be on the edge. You can’t just go into your shell and play soft.
‘You still have to be going for it and pushing the limits all the time, but just with the understanding that discipline is so key. Hopefully we’ll get on the right side of that.
‘We just shot ourselves in the foot in that last 20 against Wales with our indiscipline. If we can sort that out, we’re on to something good.’