England 6-42 South Africa
Johnson under fire as All Blacks loom
Scrum.com
November 23, 2008
England Team Manager Martin Johnson looks on during the match between England and South Africa at Twickenham in London, England on November 22, 2008.
Johnson's side play host to New Zealand at Twickenham next weekend © Getty Images
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England's rugby press have turned on their World Cup-winning legend, questioning the wisdom of Martin Johnson's appointment as the national side's manager after South Africa surged to a record 42-6 victory at Twickenham yesterday.

Johnson replaced head coach Brian Ashton, who led England to last year's World Cup final in France, in a newly created position earlier this year -- despite having no previous managerial experience at any level of rugby. The man who captained England's successful campaign at the 2003 World Cup has not found the transition to management as fulfilling.

Johnson's tenure has not got off to a successful start with a predictable win over the Pacific Islanders followed by losses to Australia (14-28) and then yesterday's annhilation by the world champion Springboks.

Writing in The Guardian Jon Henderson said the manner of England's capitulation placed Johnson under severe scrutiny.

"It (the defeat) raised questions about the manager himself. Whether, after all, it was such a good idea to put a man in charge of the national team who has no previous experience of such a task, even at club level, and whose main role since his outstanding playing career ended in 2005 has been as a corporate schmoozer. At times the England performance was little short of clueless, for which Johnson has to take much of the rap.

"After three games in charge, Johnson's record stands at an inconsequential win against the Pacific Islanders two weeks ago and two defeats, the first against Australia last weekend and now this record thrashing by a South Africa side whose scrambled victories against Wales and Scotland had alerted England to the possibility of a morale-bolstering success."

Simon Hart, in The Telegraph, said after England's heaviest defeat at Twickenham "the thunderous look on the face of Martin Johnson betrayed the depth of the crisis in which he now finds himself just three matches into his tenure as manager.

"His leadership qualities face an even tougher examination next week when he sends his side out against the All Blacks.

Beating New Zealand to claim a top-four seeding in the 2011 World Cup draw a week tomorrow is just a pipe dream. The Guardian's reporter Michael Aylwin offered another damning appraisal:

"Where to start? This was bad. Quite possibly the worst we have seen from an England side in recent times, which is saying something. Come back, Brian Ashton, all is forgiven.

"There are mitigating circumstances, of course. For a start, this is a young and inexperienced side, which is very unlike England, and we cannot suddenly complain about that when for years we were moaning that they were too old.

"But this is a second profoundly sobering defeat this autumn, with the All Blacks still to come, and so far there seems to be a distinct lack of positives being taken from them. If there is inexperience on the field, there is even more of it in the stands. At least everyone on the pitch has played rugby before.

The man managing the outfit has never managed anything before. It seems ridiculous to look at the battered brow of Martin Johnson and call it inexperienced, but this is a new challenge for him -- and not new as in a new degree of difficulty; new as in he has literally never had a go at it."

All round, Aylwin continued, "this was a horror show for any Englishman who longed for the days of Johnson's England (the one he was captain of), when everything seemed to be done on their terms and in total control."

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