England can build around imposing George Martin after Springboks display

Last Thursday, when Steve Borthwick named his side for the World Cup semi-final against South Africa, a source close to George Martin was asked whether the Leicester Tigers lock would feel nervous before a surprise start against the Springboks.

“No chance,” came the response. “He’s made different, that one.” It certainly looked that way.

If there was any hint of anxiety for Martin, a 22-year-old picking up his fourth Test start, it did not show. On the contrary, he grew to meet the occasion and the illustrious opposition. When he left the field in the 53rd minute, just before Owen Farrell’s superb drop-goal, England were 12-6 up. They had also witnessed a significant chapter in the emergence of a hefty, hard-hitting forward who can be integral to this team for the next World Cup cycle; to 2027 and way beyond.

A potentially tricky period of transition awaits, but Saturday night brought several reasons for England to be optimistic about their future. Steve Borthwick’s technical and tactical coaching was one. The individual performances of Alex Mitchell and Ben Earl were also encouraging, as were the efforts of older stagers – Maro Itoje, Elliot Daly, Farrell – clearly capable of giving more to the cause. Felix Jones, joining the backroom team from South Africa, is bound to add value before the next Six Nations.

Martin stands front and centre among these hopeful aspects. Ollie Chessum has a long international career ahead of him as well, but since George Kruis moved to Japan, with Joe Launchbury beset by injuries and Jonny Hill not quite nailing down a spot, England have had a vacancy for a naturally bulky lock with bite as a foil for Itoje. Martin seems to carry more weight than Chessum and fits that mould neatly. Of course, you could cram Martin, Itoje and Chessum into the same pack, too.

At one point in the first half, as Borthwick’s strategy was taking hold, a slow-motion replay of a heaving maul beamed from the Stade de France big screens. At its heart were Martin and Eben Etzebeth, the former reaching over his vaunted rival’s back and straining to swim towards the ball:

A writhing mass of strongmen encapsulated how an inexperienced, yet imposing upstart was disrupting South Africa. Four minutes into the second period, Etzebeth was replaced. As much as creativity, dexterity and evasion are valued assets in rugby union, the ability to move bodies will remain fundamental to the sport. And here, Martin has immense promise.

To trouble the Springboks, England needed to stand up to them in pivotal areas: scrummaging, mauling, the line-out, the aerial battle, the breakdown and on the gain-line. Martin appears to relish confrontation and was in the thick of at least four of these skirmishes.

In the fourth minute, we have an example of how he dovetailed with Maro Itoje and Courtney Lawes at the line-out. Martin begins at the tail of this four-man set-up:

England do not bite on Etzebeth’s dummy jump, with Lawes turning to lift Itoje with the help of Martin. The throw is stolen:

Martin scrummages on the tighthead side, which is normally a sign of strength:

Interestingly, corroborating Borthwick’s words about his set-piece brawn during the build-up, England did not concede a scrum penalty until Martin went off.

In the 15th minute was another demonstration of his defensive mauling. South Africa call an ‘eight plus one’ formation, bidding to land a psychological blow. Martin is at the front, poised to lift Itoje:

Instead, he stays upright and jostles through the melee:

The drive twists, but Itoje, Martin and Tom Curry swing around with the ball. Jamie George joins in and England earn the scrum when it collapses:

A bout of handbags follows and Martin grabs Cobus Reinach, the South Africa scrum-half. There was evidently a plan for England to ruffle Reinach, not just at the base of rucks but in situations like this:

The grin from Lawes at this point appeared to resemble a seal of approval; even the passing of a baton to a new enforcer.

Ben O’Keeffe takes exception to the scuffle and penalises Manu Tuilagi, causing England to defend another close-range line-out. Again, the maul is repelled, but the Springboks get to the ground and go from there.

If anyone was worried that Martin does not pick on those his own size, the next clip should dispel such concerns. Franco Mostert, outstanding for South Africa at lock, circles around and spies a chance to surge through Martin on the fringe:

With Ben Earl supporting him, the youngster sinks and smashes Mostert, who spills. The celebrations of Farrell, Jamie George and Itoje speak volumes:

A reverse angle exhibits the impact of Martin. His left arm is prevented from wrapping by the body of Earl, yet his right is around Mostert’s lower body:

Minutes later, after England have relieved pressure thanks to a scrum penalty, a box-kick from Mitchell has allowed them to move up the pitch. South Africa must re-set from an awkward breakdown and Pieter-Steph du Toit volunteers himself at first-receiver, opposite Martin and Joe Marler:

Earlier, O’Keeffe’s microphone picked up Farrell shouting “he’s not passing!” and imploring “Cuz”, Curry, to tear into Du Toit. In this instance, Martin and Marler press up in a pincer movement. They down the rangy back-rower way behind the gaine-line:

From a later line-out…

…Martin was lifted at the tail to exert pressure. Bongi Mbonambi’s throw skews off the straight:

Borthwick has tended to deploy a taller blindside flanker to complement two locks and with Martin, who is sturdy rather than naturally springy, this trend will continue when Lawes steps inevitably away from the Test area.

This ‘four plus one’ set-up was intricate and well executed, again outlining how three jumpers can combine. Martin begins at the front, with Dan Cole and Itoje poised to lift:

That first pod is dummied. Then a second pod, with Cole lifting Itoje with the help of Lawes, is also dummied. Cole keeps travelling towards the 15-metre line and Billy Vunipola joins from the receiver slot as an ‘inset lifter’ to help Lawes gather the throw unopposed:

England maul, Mitchell hoists a high ball and South Africa concede a penalty for obstruction, which Farrell converts for a 12-6 advantage.

Martin, capable of slipping into the back row himself, has improved his carrying at club level and will aim to be a more prominent asset to England’s attack. He does stand at first-receiver here…

…shifting a short tip-pass to Curry:

Fittingly, though, a heavy tackle was among his last contributions. Faf de Klerk eyes the short side here as Martin back-pedals to survey the attack:

He fronts up to send RG Snyman backwards, with Itoje stripping the ball away from Steven Kitshoff following an offload:

Eddie Jones fast-tracked Martin in 2021, handing the Tigers cub a debut in Dublin. Two-and-a-half years on, in a defiant England performance against the reigning world champions that came so close to glory, this felt like a breakthrough.

A captain of England age-grade teams, Martin finished up with nine tackles, according to Opta, and missed none. Only Curry, with 16, completed more. And there was quality, of technique and stopping power, as well as quantity.

Martin also spent a good portion of the night wearing a rather menacing grin that suggested he was thoroughly enjoying himself:

Plenty of good judges believe he has the grounded attitude to stick around for a long time as a spiky, imposing leader for England.

Steve Borthwick got a lot of things right for the semi-final. Afterwards, he said the collective display could be the platform for future success. On an individual level, few shone brighter than Martin.

Itoje put it succinctly: “I am very much looking forward to watching his career.” Martin has people justifiably excited.

Match images courtesy of ITV