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In November 2024, national team playmaker Ford looked disheartened during the match.

The replacement was brought on from the bench to support England complete an historic victory against New Zealand, however failed to convert a late penalty and drop-goal while his team fell short by two points.

In the wake of those pivotal failures, Ford needed to put in effort to get another shot to achieve success for England.

His playing time was limited to 25 minutes during this year's Six Nations however a series of strong showings, particularly on the summer matches of Argentina and the United States while Fin Smith and Marcus Smith were away on British and Irish Lions duty, returned him solidly among starting candidates.

The veteran player fully validated Steve Borthwick's faith by selecting him versus New Zealand, and the Sharks star delivered a player-of-the-match performance to help the hosts to a breakthrough triumph against the All Blacks in their own stadium since 2012.

The decisive instant came when Ford converted consecutive drop-kicks right before half-time.

This assisted England bounce back from being down 12-0 to narrow the gap to 12-11 when the half ended, before Borthwick's star-studded bench again delivered after halftime to help his side to a convincing 33-19 triumph.

"You have to give credit to the experienced players in our team, especially George," the manager commented. "During that phase when he converted those crucial kicks, he managed the game remarkably well.

"One year earlier I thought George entered and performed exceptionally well [against New Zealand].

"One kick struck the post and he tried a pressured drop-kick, however his play was outstanding.

"He's an exceptional captain, an outstanding athlete and an even better person. We are fortunate to include him in our squad."

Drop-kicks 'consistently planned'

The All Blacks began rapidly during the match, building a twelve-point advantage with tries by Leicester Fainga'anuku and Codie Taylor.

After Lawrence's powerful finish, Ford's consecutive drop-kicks meant the hosts returned to the locker room with psychological advantage.

"The tough part at those times comes when the board shows twelve to zero, we are able to adhere to our strategy and our convictions the optimal approach to perform is," Ford said.

"We got ourselves back into the game and we recognized were we to commence the final period strongly, with the bench coming on, we were in a favorable situation.

"Although facing fifteen minutes to go, we found ourselves on our own line after a penalty, thus we encountered obstacles there as well.

"I think that's what international rugby involves - who can deal with those moments the best."

Each effort happened within two minutes of each other while the number 10 who executed three crucial kicks during a victory versus Argentina during the 2023 World Cup, demonstrated his full international experience.

Ford hit two drop-kicks with Sale during a Premiership match occurring during difficult conditions at Bath - it is a skill he has extensively practiced.

"It [the drop-goals] form part of our strategy," Ford continued.

"Steve is such an incredible coach that he is always reminding me, and correctly so as three points are crucial at any stage of competition."

Ford guided his team superbly around the field the entire match, making smart decisions - both to compete and identifying openings against the defensive line.

His signature tactical bomb also bamboozled the opposing fullback, who couldn't collect.

After beginning the national team's triumph against Australia in early November, Ford relinquished the number 10 jersey to the younger Smith against Fiji the following week.

However the greatest challenge in terms of difficulty came against the multiple World Cup winners, so Ford returned to his position.

The English team, presently maintaining 10 straight wins, meet Argentina this month and curiosity remains to discover if the manager opts to Fin Smith or continues with Ford.

Whatever choice occurs, Ford demonstrated ahead of the next tournament before the World Cup that significant amounts of career ahead for him.