‘Where did you find all these pictures?’: GEORGE FORD looks back at 10 years of Six Nations clashes with Wales – from the moment where he ‘lost the plot’ to his most ‘edgy and agitated’… and Joe Marler’s show-stealing antics
George Ford’s eyes light up as he spots a photograph of his England debut in 2014. Socks pulled up to his knees, jogging on to the Twickenham pitch behind Tom Johnson and Lee Dickson. A skinny, fresh-faced 20-year-old with the world at his feet.
Ford is not someone who trades on the past. His focus is normally on the latest tactical trend of his upcoming opponents. He allows little time for self-indulgence, but here a collection of pictures from his storied career are laid out on the table in front of him.
‘Where did you find all these?’ he asks, realising they are from each of his nine Six Nations Tests against Wales. Buried memories – good, bad and ugly – come flooding back.
2014: ENGLAND 29 WALES 18: FORD’S DEBUT
‘Look at that!’ he says, picking up a picture from 12 years ago. His first cap. Ford was brought on to replace Owen Farrell, who was for so long the dominant voice in England’s ranks.
‘I was only on the field for about a minute. I was on the bench for the game before against Ireland but I never got on. Afterwards I thought, “God, what if I don’t get that opportunity again?” I played for Bath the following week, Exeter away, but thankfully I got my opportunity.
‘You had to sing a song on the night of your first cap. Brown Eyed Girl by Van Morrison. The debutants had to have a drink with every member of the squad. It was back in the day of those big black-tie dinners. I got about eight drinks in and then I was a bit worse for wear!’
‘Where did you find all these?’ George Ford asks, realising the pictures presented to him by Daily Mail Sport are from each of his Six Nations Tests against Wales
Ford (far right) replaces Owen Farrell to win his first England cap, against Wales in 2014
2015: WALES 16 ENGLAND 21: TUNNEL STAND-OFF
Mutiny was often in the air when Warren Gatland was in charge of Wales.
He stoked the flames of the cross-border rivalry, bringing a smirk to Ford’s face as we move on to a picture of the bright lights of Cardiff in 2015. A cold night with a red hot atmosphere as England refused to leave the tunnel before kick-off.
‘Looking back now, that night was one of my fondest memories playing for England. It was my first proper experience of Cardiff. You get that atmosphere when you drive down to the stadium and they all hate the English. We had a few injuries and not many people were giving us a chance.
‘Traditionally in Cardiff, Wales make the away team go out first before they turn the lights off and make you wait on the pitch. There’s this big build up but that week, Stuart Lancaster and Chris Robshaw said, “Right, we’re not going out until Wales go out”. I was third or fourth in the queue, a young kid, getting a bit edgy and agitated. I was thinking “Let’s just go” but fair play to Robbo, he stuck to his guns. I don’t think we could have delayed it any longer! We won the match and the buzz we got off that was awesome.’
England and Ford eventually take to the field at the Millennium Stadium – but not until Wales had. ‘I was getting a bit edgy. I was thinking “Let’s just go” but fair play to Chris Robshaw, he stuck to his guns’
2016: ENGLAND 25 WALES 21: EDDIE’S ERA BEGINS
No coach survived to tell the tale of England’s disastrous 2015 World Cup defeat by Wales but the playing group stuck together. Ford has played under various England coaches but none made such an immediate impression as Eddie Jones.
‘Winning that Triple Crown was one of the first big steps after 2015. It was a bit of a reset. To be honest, I didn’t spend a long enough time under Stuart and his coaches, Andy Farrell, Mike Catt, Graham Rowntree. I was loving it under them and it was all a bit of a shock that we had a poor World Cup. Me being a year into my international career, it was all turned on its head a little bit by what happened.
‘Eddie came in and shook things up. We went on a bit of a run. You hear a lot of things about Eddie, don’t you, but I haven’t got a bad word to say about him. I remember my first meeting with him at Bath at Farleigh House.
‘He told me I was going to be his starting 10 and this is what he wants me to bring to the team. One thing Eddie was good at was saying it how it is. From the off, I felt like I had full backing from him. It was a new start.’
Ben Youngs, Ford and Owen Farrell of England pose with the Triple Crown trophy in 2016
2017: WALES 16 ENGLAND 21: NIGHT TO REMEMEBER
Certain Six Nations moments are immortalised with the comforting commentary of Eddie Butler. Replayed year after year. Elliot Daly’s match-winning try in the 76th minute remains Ford’s box-office moment in the modern Anglo-Welsh contests.
‘People still watch that try now, don’t they? I look at the Welsh players there. Jamie Roberts, Dan Biggar, Justin Tipuric, Alex Cuthbert… they had a great team, didn’t they?
‘I’ll never forget the last five minutes of that match. When I realised Jonathan Davies’ kick was staying on the field and we had myself, Owen and Elliot back there… that was our moment. We had practised kick-return opportunities so many times. We wanted to be decisive, go back at the opposition and score off the first phase.
‘Look at Benny Te’o in that photo! We lost the plot a little bit in that moment. I look at it now and think, “What are we all doing?” but you can’t replicate moments like that. Faz’s pass to Elliot was on the money. That’s the drama that makes sport amazing.’
‘People still watch that Elliot Daly try now, don’t they? Look at Benny Te’o (far right) in that photo! We lost the plot a little bit. That’s the drama that makes sport amazing’
Daily Mail Sport’s Nik Simon takes England’s No 10 Ford on a trip down memory lane
2018: ENGLAND 12 WALES 6: POOR OLD PRIESTLAND
With 105 caps and counting, Ford has outlasted most Welsh opponents. He has faced Biggar, Rhys Priestland, Callum Sheedy, Jarrod Evans, Owen Williams and Gareth Anscombe.
In 2018, Rhys Patchell was the man in possession of Wales’ No 10 jersey. Ever the wind-up merchant, Jones blew up the pre-match narrative by publicly questioning his bottle.
‘There were things Eddie did that we weren’t used to as English players. He would call out an individual player. We would be playing Wales or Italy or whoever and Eddie would come out on a Tuesday and say, “We’re going to smash these, it’s going to be 40 points”. As a player you’re like, “Woah”.
‘We wouldn’t know about it ‘til it hit the media. It would be “Lads, have you seen this?” Hot off the press! Warren Gatland wasn’t afraid either, and it built the game up. You’re focussing on your own job, trying to block that out, but it all added to the rivalry.
‘In a funny way, looking back on it, it filled us with confidence. It put a bit more expectation on us but I think that’s the genius of Eddie’s mindset. He got the best out of people.’
‘Eddie did things we weren’t used to as English players. He would call out an individual player or say “we’re going to smash these, it’s going to be 40 points”. As a player you’re like, “Woah”’
2020: ENGLAND 33 WALES 30: MARLER THE TRAITOR
‘I know where this one is going,’ says Ford, face in his hands. I present him with the infamous picture of Joe Marler grabbing Alun Wyn Jones’ genitals. ‘Marler-gate. That caused a bit of trouble, didn’t it? Sam Underhill made that try-saving tackle but that moment over-shadowed the game, didn’t it?
‘I love Joe. He’s one of my close mates. You never know what’s coming, but what a team-mate. He was the most loyal, caring team-mate you could ask for. There are things in his career that blew up, but deep-down Joe is a real good guy.
‘The way he is on TV now, doing things like Traitors, that’s how he was every day. He’s not trying to be someone he’s not. I can’t see him going on to Dancing on Ice but I’d like to see him doing a Bushtucker trial in the jungle next!’
‘Marler-gate. That caused a bit of trouble, didn’t it? Sam Underhill made that try-saving tackle but that moment over-shadowed the game, didn’t it?’
2021: WALES 40 ENGLAND 24: LOCKED DOWN
Ford grimaces at the swathes of empty seats at the Principality Stadium.
‘Covid. That was a weird time to play. We are used to going to the Millennium Stadium and playing in one of the best atmospheres in the world. It was empty and it was eerie.
‘Even though it was England-Wales, it felt like a training game. We finished the game and got straight back on the bus back to the hotel, straight into your own room.
‘We were well beaten which was disappointing. Do you know what I remember that game for? Wales had a penalty and Biggar hit a crossfield kick. We weren’t ready, the ref had been speaking to us, and they scored from it. I like Biggar. He was always difficult to play against. A real warrior.’
‘Covid. That was a weird time to play. We are used to going to the Millennium Stadium and playing in one of the best atmospheres in the world. It was empty and it was eerie’
2024: ENGLAND 16 WALES 14: GROWING PAINS
A couple of penalties by Ford won the game for England but the supporters at Twickenham were not satisfied. England were criticised for kicking the ball too much but Ford stuck to the plan.
‘We had a good crack at the 2023 World Cup but this felt like Steve Borthwick’s fresh start, with Jamie George as captain. The first thing Steve did was come in and implement some foundations to make us difficult to beat.
‘Set piece, defence, discipline, breakdown. I remember him saying, “First we’re difficult to beat, then we win, but we don’t win by much, then we want to layer on the attack and win well”.
‘That was a scrappy, tight game and we just about won. I know it was frustrating at the time. People were saying “You’re kicking it too much, England are clunky, they look like they don’t know what they’re doing” but it was a work in progress.
‘That’s why I think Steve is such a brilliant coach, because he has that vision. Now I think we’re seeing the benefits of that.’
‘That was a scrappy, tight game and we just about won. I know it was frustrating at the time’
2025: WALES 14 ENGLAND 68: WELSH WOE
A Test century beckoned for Ford but it had to wait. He played a bit-part role in last year’s Six Nations Championships, with Fin Smith wearing the jersey as England’s No 10 debate rumbled on.
‘To go and score that many points against Wales was brilliant. This was my only appearance in that Six Nations, off the bench, but my mindset was no different to any other day. Every player wants to play but you shouldn’t change who you are as a person, regardless of whether you’re selected or not. I like to think I held that consistency.
‘Fin was starting most of that Six Nations and you can also see Marcus Smith in the corner of that picture, there. We all help each other. The end goal is how good can we make this England team to win games and hopefully win a World Cup.’
We spend the best part of an hour looking through old photographs before our conversation bridges back to the present. England remain blessed with No 10s but, perhaps for the first time since his debut, Ford can finally feel like the man in charge. Rather than digging further into the past, I ask how he felt about Borthwick’s remarks that he sees Ford as a future England coach.
He laughs. ‘I would love to go into coaching after I finish playing,’ he says. ‘I’ve not thought about coaching England as quickly as possible, because you don’t know what journey you’re going to go on. But I love the game, I’m obsessed with the game.
‘I love the intrigue of turning a team around and making a team win but you just don’t know… I’ve played with a load of good players who haven’t worked out as coaches and I’ve played with a load that love it.’
‘Fin Smith was starting most of that Six Nations and you can also see Marcus Smith in the corner of that picture, there. We all help each other’
‘I would love to go into coaching after I finish playing,’ Ford says. ‘I’ve not thought about coaching England as quickly as possible. You don’t know what journey you’re going to go on’
Ford is most comfortable in the present, discussing trends in low-phase attacks and the intricacies of the kicking battle. This weekend will be Ford’s 10th Six Nations game against Wales and the balance of power has shifted horribly, with Welsh rugby in turmoil.
‘When I first came into the England team, Wales were without doubt our biggest rivals. The calibre of players they had, the success they had, what happened at the 2015 World Cup…
‘A lot of rivalries depend on the recent history of results but I don’t think the Wales-England rivalry will ever change. Regardless of the form or the players who are playing, it always feels like a real grudge match.’
And with that, Ford heads off into his next analysis session. ‘I enjoyed that. It was good, something a bit different,’ he says, ready to create the next piece of history in the Anglo-Welsh rivalry.
