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During November 2024, English number 10 George Ford cut a dejected figure on the Allianz Stadium turf.

He was called upon from the bench to support the hosts close out a memorable triumph against New Zealand, yet missed a decisive kick plus a drop-goal attempt while his team lost by a narrow margin.

In the wake of those pivotal failures, the player was required to strive to get another shot at delivering glory for the national side.

He played only 25 minutes in the recent Six Nations however a series of excellent displays, notably in the summer tour against Argentina and the USA when the Smith players had departed for Lions team responsibilities, returned him solidly in the starting mix.

At 32 years old did more than justify Steve Borthwick's faith in starting him facing the Kiwis, plus the club standout produced a man-of-the-match display to help the hosts to a breakthrough triumph over New Zealand on home soil ending a drought dating to 2012.

The pivotal moment occurred as Ford nailed back-to-back drop-goals just before the break.

This enabled the English bounce back from being down 12-0 to narrow the gap to 12-11 by halftime, before Borthwick's star-studded bench again delivered after halftime to assist the team to a convincing 33-19 triumph.

"You have to give credit to the veteran members in our team, particularly Ford," Borthwick told. "During that phase when he converted those drop-kicks, he directed play just incredibly.

"Last year In my view George substituted and competed exceptionally well [versus the All Blacks].

"One kick struck the post and he had a difficult drop-goal, however his play was outstanding.

"He is a phenomenal leader, a brilliant player and an even better person. We are honored to have him in our squad."

Drop-goals 'part of the strategy'

New Zealand began rapidly during the match, surging to a substantial early margin via touchdowns by two key players.

Subsequent to Ollie Lawrence's strong try, Ford's back-to-back three-pointers resulted in the home side returned to the locker room with renewed energy.

"The challenging thing during those periods comes when the board shows 12-0, we can stick to our plan and our convictions the best way to play the game is," Ford stated.

"We fought our way back into the game and we understood should we begin the latter half effectively, with the bench coming on, we found ourselves in a favorable situation.

"Despite having fifteen minutes to go, we ended up on our own line with a yellow card, thus we encountered obstacles in that instance too.

"In my opinion that represents elite competition requires - who manages best in those circumstances superiorly."

The two attempts came within close succession as Ford who executed three crucial kicks in a win versus Argentina in the last global tournament, showed all his 104-cap experience.

Ford converted two drop-kicks with Sale in a Prem game occurring during challenging weather at Bath - this demonstrates a talent he has mastered thoroughly.

"These attempts form part of our strategy," Ford added.

"The coach is such an outstanding manager since he continually in my ear about it, and appropriately because three points are crucial during any phase of competition."

Ford directed his side brilliantly around the field all game, executing intelligent kicks - both in contestable situations and identifying openings behind the visitors' backfield.

His characteristic 'spiral bomb' further confused the opposing fullback, who failed to regather.

After beginning the national team's triumph versus the Wallabies on 1 November, Ford handed over the number 10 jersey to Fin Smith against Fiji seven days later.

However the greatest challenge on paper this autumn was presented by the multiple World Cup winners, and Ford reclaimed his starting role.

The English team, presently maintaining an unbeaten streak of ten, meet Argentina in late November and it will be interesting to discover if the manager opts to Fin Smith or continues with Ford.

Whatever choice occurs, Ford proved two years away prior to global competition that significant amounts of play remaining within him.