'One step forward...'

The Autumn Internationals saw an England side progressing towards the World Cup with such promise that you could be forgiven for thinking they had an outside chance of contending for the ultimate prize. Okay so they were out-classed by the All Blacks and beaten up by a monster South African pack, but some valuable lessons were learned and the quite brilliant manner in which they dispatched Australia gave hope to the nation that this group of fresh faced individuals might just have a successful future on the International stage.

Fast forward a couple of months and that optimistic outlook has been shelved again. Injuries to key players and question marks over some of the important selections has put paid to that and a feeling of uncertainty has crept in. England aren't ready and this World Cup was always going to come too soon, but all of a sudden challenging France for the Six Nations crown looks a little less feasible and there is a fear that the developments ongoing under Johnson could stagnate.

It's not so much the injuries to Lawes, Croft and Moody, because they can't be helped, but who they are to be replaced by. England's improvement has resulted from the selection of a different breed of forward and by reverting to able and try-hard plodders they risk undermining the style they've developed in the last year. With all due respect to Louis Deacon and Joe Worsley, who have been and still are outstanding professionals, they don't offer the same impact, threat or skills set to the men they are replacing and more importantly they don't offer the same dynamism.

International Rugby has moved on. Gone are the days of the Lock who got by on his setpiece and rucking alone. All of a sudden a Second Row is expected to be able to pass and carry the ball, tackle in the tight but now in the loose also and generally act as an extra backrower. In Lawes, England have produced a new breed but in selecting Deacon they revert to the plodding option who isn't going to throw the pass that sends Chris Ashton the length of the field. The same goes for Worsley. Make no mistake about it, the brute from Wasps tackles and boy he tackles hard but it's more of a case of what he doesn't do than what he does. Joe doesn't offer a lineout option, he doesn't carry well in the loose and he certainly isn't going to 'corner-flag' like Croft does.

Perhaps there isn't the pool of players available to Johnson to continue the style they've developed? Maybe Worsley and Deacon will perform admirably in this upcoming Six Nations? Only time will tell. Let's just hope that we don't hear that dreadful phrase from every microphone of every pundit this February when referring to England; 'One step forward...'.

Where there's a Wilshere, there's a Way

So England went to the World Cup and got embarrased. The media went into a frenzy, the public went home disappointed and the phrase 'I told you so' was so overused in every pub in the country that it's now safely been put away under lock and key until the next International tournament of any note. Not particularly groundbreaking stuff is it?

By the time the new season came around, Englands exit was a distant memory as fans engrossed themselves once more in the vibrant multicultural world that is; Premier League football. The national teams issues had been shelved once again, under the assertion that we'll probably qualify for the Euro's with relative ease, and nobody really made a song and dance about it.

In fact the whole process felt a bit cyclical, like we'd been here before too regularly. And yet, despite the depressing manner in which we were catapulted out of Africa, this season has brought hope and more importantly it's brought us an opportunity. An opportunity to start fresh, to leave our old stagnant ideas, characterised by fear and failure, by the wayside and instead put faith in the new batch; the untouched batch.

Jack Wilshere and Kieran Gibbs at Arsenal, Andy Carroll at Newcastle, Martin Kelly at Liverpool and Jordan Henderson at Sunderland head a list of talented young players that need to be catapulted into the England squad and exposed properly to the vigours of International Football in the early years of their career. Forget inexperience and forget whether they are good enough to win the World Cup now. They are the future and the sooner they become regulars, in not just the England squad but in the starting team, the sooner we can properly build for the World Cup in 2014.

In Wilshere, England have an artist. Somebody in the Xavi/Iniesta mould who is constantly probing defences, with instinctive one touch passing and glorious through balls. For so long now we've had the Gerrard-Lampard question and now we have an alternative, a different style of footballer, who should be given precendence over both.

Andy Carroll is equally an interesting proposition. For too long we've berated our target men for not having either the necessary touch or composure, in the case of Heskey, or for lacking the physical presence, like Crouch. Carroll has both and will provide an excellent partner for Rooney.

Gibbs and Kelly are full backs (Kelly can also play center back) with exciting potential and although Gibbs shouldn't dispossess Cole of his shirt just yet, he has undoubtedly shown that he is the future once the Chelsea left-back comes to the end of his career.

Add Joe Hart, Wayne Rooney, Adam Johnson and Theo Walcott to the four mentioned and you've already got the basis of a fresher looking, dynamic England team ready to cause a stir at the Euro's and build towards the ultimate prize; the World Cup.

So suddenly things don't look so depressing. Maybe there are some answers? Let's just hope Fabio puts in faith in the new batch and gives it a real go.

Inside the boardroom at Ewood Park....

Inside the boardroom at Ewood Park....

Anuradha Desai: Welcome to Ewood Park Ronald. Do you mind if I call you Ronald?
Ronaldinho: (Nods)
AD: Excellent. So we want you to come and join Blackburn Rovers, we're an ambitious group of chicken fa...I mean... owners and we envisage Champions League Football in the next couple of years.
R: Well that sounds promising. Who exactly is the manager?
AD: I think his name is...hang on I'll just check my notes...that's right! His name is Steve Kean and he truly is a World Class operator.
R: I see. Are there any players of note at the club?
AD: Why yes Ronald. We have Chris Samba...oh no wait it says here in my notes that he wants to leave...hmmm oh yes that's right! We've got David Dunn, you must have heard of him?
R: (Sniggers) Do you mean the same David Dunn who is widely known for that piece of trickery in a Birmingham shirt?
AD: David played for Birmingham? Hmm interesting. You'll have to forgive me, my knowledge of Football spans only from the World Cup this summer. Yes I'd assume that very same one.
R: (Raises eyebrows) Wow yes he really is a good player... What sort of area would I be living in?
AD: Ronald! You will love the North West! Blackburn is a beautiful town, it truly is. It used to have cotton mills but they've gone now and it isn't grey at all...honest.
R: Ah yes! The weather - what am i to expect?
AD: Well it's mixed. Since we've been here it's rained but in different quantities and at different times of the day. You never know what you are going to get. Some days it rains in the morning, some days in the afternoon. Sometimes it actually rains all day. Quite a sight I'm sure you'll agree.
R: So you are telling me it just rains here?
AD: Well it has snowed. That's always fun. Colder but more fun. But who needs the Sun?
R: You do realise I'm Brazilian?
AD: (Checks notes). Oh are you? Oh right. Well it is sunny in the Summer I hear.
R: (Leaves to walk out). I'm not sure Blackburn is going to be the place for me.
AD: No wait! Ronald! I haven't even told you about your bonuses for goalscoring and appearances. We were going to give you a chicken for every goal....