Lining up against South Africa is the ultimate challenge for a fly-half. Marcus Smith will have learned a lot from sitting on the sidelines during last summer’s Lions tour.
He will know how they operate and now is the perfect chance for him to step out at Twickenham and run the show.
The Springboks have the most aggressive rush defence in the world. Players like Malcolm Marx, Eben Etzebeth and Duane Vermeulen are huge men who pride themselves on their physicality.
Marcus Smith has a bag full of tricks that could help him run the show against South Africa
They are really down-to-earth, religious guys but on the pitch they are different animals. You know they will try to knock the wind out of you, but as a No 10 that presents opportunities.
Smith won’t be fazed or intimidated by the sight of a big defender flying at him. His footwork can get him out of a lot of trouble. He’s got the full bag of tricks.
If anything, you welcome those players flying out of the line because it leaves space somewhere else on the field.
If you’ve got the pass away and then you’re hit late, you can jump back up feeling pretty chuffed about it. You might give the tackler a pat on the head but you don’t dwell on it because you’ve got to dust yourself off and get into the next play.
If I put myself in Smith’s shoes, I would have spent the early stages of this week looking at South Africa’s defensive unit. It’s not about individuals.
The Springboks are aggressive Smith won't be fazed by a big defender flying in at him
England have a bespoke app on the iPads, full of opposition footage, and the playmakers will study hours of video clips to work out how to get over, around or through the defence.
South Africa want to put pressure on guys like Smith to stop them from playing the ball into the space. They rush up quickly, with the wingers pushing up really high to get into your eye-line. The sight of a defender rushing up into your passing channel can spook you and make you think twice.
A split-second makes a huge difference. If you worry about your pass being intercepted by one of these onrushing wingers, then it takes away your confidence and stops you from throwing the pass. Instead, you turn back inside where you’re hit by a big bruiser. That’s the goal of a blitz defence.
As a No 10, you are constantly looking at the opportunities that present themselves. If their wingers are pressing really high, you know there’s going to be loads of space in behind them. If you can get the ball into that pocket of space then you know there’s going to be a scoring opportunity.
During the third Lions Test, Finn Russell
