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Back in November 2024, English number 10 George Ford appeared disappointed during the match.

Ford had been summoned off the sidelines to help England close out a famous win versus the All Blacks, yet missed a late penalty along with a drop-kick while his team lost in a close contest.

In the wake of those pivotal failures, the player was required to strive to get another shot to achieve success for the national side.

His playing time was limited to 25 minutes throughout the Six Nations tournament but a string of excellent displays, notably in the summer matches of Argentina and the United States while Fin Smith and Marcus Smith had departed for Lions tour commitments, returned him solidly among starting candidates.

At 32 years old did more than justify the coach's trust by selecting him facing the Kiwis, but the Sale Sharks playmaker delivered a player-of-the-match performance to assist England to a breakthrough triumph against the All Blacks in their own stadium for the first time since 2012.

The pivotal moment came when Ford nailed back-to-back drop-goals just before the break.

This assisted England bounce back from being down 12-0 to narrow the gap to 12-11 when the half ended, ahead of the manager's skilled reserves again delivered after halftime to support England to a comfortable 33-19 triumph.

"You have to give credit to the senior players in our team, notably George," Borthwick told. "In that moment where he hit those crucial kicks, he managed the game absolutely brilliantly.

"One year earlier I thought George substituted and competed exceptionally well [facing the Kiwis].

"One kick struck the post and he had a pressured drop-kick, however his play was outstanding.

"He is a phenomenal leader, a brilliant player and an even better person. We are honored to include him within our roster."

Drop-goals 'always in the plan'

New Zealand commenced strongly during the match, building a substantial early margin via touchdowns by Leicester Fainga'anuku and Codie Taylor.

Subsequent to Ollie Lawrence's strong try, the fly-half's successive drop-kicks meant the hosts bounced into the changing rooms with psychological advantage.

"The challenging thing in those moments is, when the scoreboard says twelve to zero, we must maintain to our plan and our convictions the best way to play the game is," Ford explained.

"We fought our way back into the game and we understood should we begin the latter half effectively, with the bench coming on, we were in a good position.

"Despite having fifteen minutes to go, we were positioned on our own line after a penalty, thus we encountered obstacles there as well.

"I believe this illustrates elite competition requires - which team can handle in those circumstances most effectively."

Each effort came within close succession as Ford who successfully converted three drop-goals in a successful match against Argentina during the 2023 World Cup, showed all his international experience.

Ford hit two three-pointers with Sale during a Premiership match conducted in tough circumstances at Bath - this represents an ability he has extensively practiced.

"The drop-kicks is always in the plan," Ford stated further.

"Steve is such an incredible coach that he is always advising me, and correctly so because three points prove important at any stage of play."

Ford guided his team superbly across the pitch the entire match, kicking smartly - both to compete and in finding space behind the visitors' backfield.

His trademark 'spiral bomb' additionally troubled Beauden Barrett, who couldn't collect.

After beginning the national team's triumph against Australia during the autumn series, Ford relinquished the starting role to his replacement for the Fiji victory a week later.

Yet the most significant examination on paper this autumn came against the experienced New Zealand team, and Ford reclaimed his position.

The English team, presently maintaining ten consecutive victories, play against Argentina in late November and it will be interesting to determine whether the coach returns to Fin Smith or continues with Ford.

Whatever choice occurs, Ford demonstrated with two years remaining prior to global competition that there is plenty of play remaining for him.