I want to make memories, not count minutes
As he sits on the brink of 100 Test appearances, George Ford says his first remains "the proudest memory of my career".Albeit a short one."I wasn't on the field very long! I managed to sneak on for a minute," he says."I was trying to be present in the moment. "As a kid you dream of it, it is a bit surreal when you actually do it, especially at Twickenham in front of 80,000 people and your family."It was March 2014 against Wales in the Six Nations. After replacing Owen Farrell, Ford fed Billy Twelvetrees a short ball and kicked long up to opposition wing George North in his two involvements before the final whistle.But while Twelvetrees and North are now seeing out their careers in second-tier club rugby, Ford, who is 32, is still a Test operator."The game has changed a lot in 11 years," he says."There was a lot more time and space back then. Defences bring more line speed, the physicality seems to have gone up another level and the speed of the game has gone up."Forwards are ending up like backs and backs are ending up like forwards these days."In Test rugby, every area is so contested - the breakdown, in the air or the set-piece - if you are not quite on it, you get punished."Maybe there was a bit of margin for error 11 years ago but there definitely isn't now."
And there won't be margin for error this Saturday.England are taking on Argentina in the first of two fiendish summer Tests. It is being staged at the 32,000-capacity Jorge Luis Hirschi Stadium, home of top-flight football side Estudiantes.And the Pumas, fifth in the world and fresh from beating the British and Irish Lions, will be being urged on to claim a sweet, long-sought-after series win over England."To walk into an atmosphere like that is incredibly exciting," says Ford."Argentina are a really dangerous team. They have physicality up front, with some passionate, emotional players who base their game on being physical."But they have added skill and X-factor and can make you pay if you are loose, striking fast off turnover and transition."They have definitely taken steps forwards in the recent past. But we feel like we are in a good place ourselves, even with a few new faces and a few guys missing."We have a plan and believe we can cause them some problems."Ford has impressed in the past against Argentina.He was a star performer when England, again without their Lions players, won both matches on tour in 2017.He was man of the match when England beat Argentina in the 2019 Rugby World Cup.And he was again when he booted all 27 points to steer 14-man England safely to victory over the Pumas in their 2023 tournament opener.
Similarly stellar displays this summer would be timely.Ford was in England's starting 10 through the 2024 Six Nations but, with an Achilles problem ruling him out, Marcus Smith supplanted him on tour in New Zealand, before Fin Smith emerged as first choice in 2025.Both Smiths are away with the Lions at the moment. Possession is nine-tenths of the law. Opportunity apparently knocks.Ford has long since stopped seeing it like that though. He has been both in and out of favour since 2014. A decade and more in, he takes the long view."Throughout my international career, one thing has been a constant - the debate, discussion and noise around who plays number 10 for England," Ford says."It is always there."Of course we all try to develop and improve, and I will make sure I am putting my hand up. Of course I will."But the main thing here is – and I don't think people quite understand this - that we are all trying to make England win."The mindset for me is that I am part of an England team and squad. Whatever my role is at that time, I will do to the best of my abilities to make the team to win."That is why we are here. Those are the memories you create when the team wins. It is not about how many minutes you play as an individual at 10. It is about how many games you win with England."That is my total mindset towards all this. "Fin and Marcus are away doing unbelievable things with the Lions and my role this summer might be different to what it was in the Six Nations but what I do day in, day out and the consistency of that won't change."
That level-headedness and single-mindedness is something Ford is trying to impress on his younger team-mates.Without their Lions, England are short of experience. Nine of Saturday's starting XV have fewer than 15 caps. Will Muir and Seb Atkinson will be making their Test debuts, with Guy Pepper likely to follow off the bench."Maybe us experienced lads can lend some advice about what a Test match arena can feel like at times," said Ford."When you are under pump, the pressure is on and the opposition crowd are on their feet... You may be under stress or pressure but it won't last like that forever and you can turn the game. That is what experience gives you."You have gone through it enough times to ride those peaks and troughs and over the full 80 minutes hopefully be able to control it enough to get the result at the end."Eleven years on, 100 caps in, whatever the noise around him, Ford is zeroed in on the win.
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