Even the sun glinting off the harbour on a picture-perfect day could not deflect from the issues England must address if this tour is to stay afloat. Like an old tugboat they were shown up by swifter and more modern-minded opponents at the weekend, but there was nothing from Martin Johnson today to indicate a major change of tack for Saturday's second Test against Australia.
The biggest clue lay in the composition of the midweek XV for tomorrow's game against the Australian Barbarians in Gosford. It includes just one player – James Haskell – from the first Test squad, which suggests Johnson is not planning wholesale changes following the 27‑17 loss in Perth. Places may well beckon for Ben Youngs at scrum-half and for Courtney Lawes in the second-row but, beyond a possible recall for Jonny Wilkinson, something special will have to happen at the evocatively-named Bluetongue stadium to catapult the dirt-trackers into starting contention.
If the personnel are largely destined to remain the same, the only other option open to England is to up their game collectively. Johnson's verdict, having completed a detailed review, is that his side were undone by a combination of poor defence and distinctly average tactical kicking, compounded by the Wallabies' greater physical intensity and excellent defence. This is all true but does not reflect the reality that the fluent Australian backs are also playing a game with which their opponents are barely acquainted.
The Bath centre Olly Barkley believes the Wallabies possess the world's best attacking unit behind the scrum, neatly summing up what was evident to all. "They're always looking to play a ball-player at 12 and you can see they have a very good understanding of how to play flat or deep and how to get around teams. In terms of how slick they are in their distribution, they're a hard bunch to contain." It is a long time – if ever – since an opponent said the same about England.
Johnson distrusts the word "freedom" in a rugby sense – "What does freedom mean exactly?" – but the concept is straightforward enough. The Australian backs are reared to believe anything is possible if space can be attacked intelligently and at pace, whereas too many of their British counterparts are fearful of the consequences of venturing "off-script". With the game increasingly opening up again thanks to consistently quicker ball at the breakdown, the difference in attitude and incisiveness is becoming more marked than ever.
This is not something which can be rectified overnight, forcing England to fall back on what they know in their hour of need. More aggression around the contact area has been demanded and Johnson has quietly reiterated that World Cup squad places could hinge on how individuals respond this week. "The weekend was a step up in intensity and quality from what we played in the Six Nations," admitted the manager. "The way the game is being played down here is different and we need to get with it pretty quick. We have to better and sharper at what we do."
For the likes of Haskell, picked at No8 tomorrow with Joe Worsley captaining the team from the blindside flank, that means imposing himself from the start. "You can't be startled by the intensity, you've got to know that's what's coming and meet it head on," he said. "If you get beaten on ability and skill that's one thing, but you never want to come off the field thinking 'We didn't physically impose ourselves.' All that feeling is going to come out [in the second Test] so that when Australia come off the field they go: 'Christ, we've just played England.' "
Haskell also accepted that a third tour game without a win could damage individual aspirations. Leicester's Geoff Parling is nursing a sore neck and Ugo Monye has a nagging groin problem, but everyone else will be expected to deliver. "People have to realise that if you don't seize opportunities you disappear. It's as simple as that," Haskell said. The only consistent success England have enjoyed so far has been at disciplinary tribunals, with Sale's Mark Cueto escaping any sanction following his citing for a high tackle on Berrick Barnes.
England (v Australian Barbarians): D Armitage (London Irish); Strettle (Harlequins), Waldouck (London Wasps), Barkley (Bath), Banahan (Bath); C Hodgson (Sale Sharks), Wigglesworth (Sale Sharks); Golding (Newcastle), Mears (Bath), Doran-Jones (Gloucester), Attwood (Gloucester), Ward-Smith (London Wasps), Worsley (London Wasps, capt), S Armitage (London Irish), Haskell (Stade Français). Replacements: Webber (London Wasps), Flatman (Bath), Robshaw (Harlequins), Dowson (Northampton), P Hodgson (London Irish), Geraghty (Northampton), Tait (Sale Sharks).
