Bath friends prove they have true spirit

14 April 2012

Mike Tindall's first thought was to commiserate with his mate while Mike Catt responded with a pat on the back and a smile which could only have been hiding the pain.

Between them here on England's D-Day in Sydney, the Bath colleagues at the centre of World Cup Final ecstasy and anguish displayed the nobility of spirit which made coach Clive Woodward's most "brutal" job of telling Catt that he wasn't in the final starting XV much easier to bear.

For the last three days, Tindall, for so long an integral part of the England backline, confessed that he had wondered gloomily whether his dream of playing in the final was over after Catt had relegated him to the bench in the tactical switch for the game against France and had not really put a foot wrong.

Yet today, Tindall admitted being "overjoyed" and relieved after learning that his strength and solidity in the centre had regained him the final spot over Catt in a team which, apart from Matt Dawson replacing Kyran Bracken, is the one which started in England's historic first victory on Australian soil back in June.

He had nothing but praise for his 32-year-old pal, who shrugged off his natural disappointment at finding himself back on the bench with the selfless observation: "This isn't about Mike Catt, it's not about me being disappointed - it's about England winning the World Cup."

Woodward felt they had both been champions in their attitude. "I sat down with Catt, went through the decision with him and he completely understood it and agreed with it," said Woodward. "We shook hands and his reaction was absolutely spot on. Because the players knew if any of them weren't prepared to accept such disappointment, they shouldn't be here.

"Tindall was the same last weekend before the France game. We watched him from the coaches' box going round encouraging the players in the warm-up, ignoring his own disappointment. That shows very special spirit, the real strength of the team."

Tindall explained: "It was going through my head that I wouldn't get back in but I didn't want to show any negativity so I had to be upbeat. They're your best friends out there and though they were playing in a game I dreamed I'd be in, I knew I had to give them every encouragement.

"I feel for Catty because he's done absolutely nothing wrong in playing terms and there was absolutely no awkwardness between me and him when the team was announced. We know each other well and have been through a lot together and Catty's fine with the decision."

Ultimately, said Woodward, the decision to revert to the tried-and-trusted Tindall-Will Greenwood axis in the centre was a case of "horses for courses".

The pair both had huge matches in defence and also scored a try apiece in England's 25-14 Melbourne win, which was so expansive that it showed how short people's memories are here. However, the Wallabies team that day was unrecognisable from the one announced by Eddie Jones today.

Clearly, the power of Stirling Mortlock's charges in the centre, which rocked the All Blacks, has been a concern for England's defence coach Phil Larder, who conceded that Tindall was "a little bit more experienced in the defensive pattern, a bit quicker and a bit more powerful" than Catt.

There will be those who will wonder if the absence of Catt as Jonny Wilkinson's midfield security blanket might exert fresh pressure on England's lynchpin but Woodward insisted: "I've got no doubt that he will handle Saturday fantastically well whoever plays next to him. I expect Jonny to play like he always plays.

"The problems in the earlier group matches weren't Jonny's fault. It was my fault, the coaches' faults that we became a bit predictable as a team, playing a bit too narrow and direct.

"But on Sunday night, you could see from the running of the forwards - having Woodman and Vickery back and Hill back - there was a bit more balance in how we're playing.

"We haven't been perfect by a long way but we're here and we're 80 minutes away from doing something special. We did pretty well on Sunday but I think England's best performance is about to come on Saturday."

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