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In November 2024, England fly-half Ford looked disheartened during the match.

He was called upon from the bench to support the hosts secure a memorable triumph versus the All Blacks, yet missed a late penalty plus a drop-goal attempt as his side fell short by two points.

In the wake of those pivotal failures, Ford had to work hard to earn another opportunity to bring victory for the national side.

He saw just 25 minutes of action in the recent Six Nations yet multiple excellent displays, 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, put him firmly back in the starting mix.

At 32 years old fully validated the manager's confidence in starting him against the All Blacks, and the Sharks star produced a man-of-the-match display to assist England to their initial victory versus the Kiwis on home soil for the first time since 2012.

The decisive instant in the game Ford converted two drop-goals in succession immediately preceding halftime.

This assisted England recover from 12-0 down to trail 12-11 at the break, ahead of the manager's skilled reserves repeatedly excelled after halftime to assist the team to a comfortable 33-19 victory.

"Credit must be given to the veteran members on our squad, especially George," the coach stated. "In that moment when he converted those drop-kicks, he directed play absolutely brilliantly.

"One year earlier I thought George came on and played exceptionally well [versus the All Blacks].

"A kick hit the post while he attempted a drop-goal under pressure, yet he performed excellently.

"He is a phenomenal leader, a superb performer and an even finer individual. We are privileged to feature him on our team."

Drop-goals 'part of the strategy'

The All Blacks started quickly at Allianz Stadium, building a substantial early margin via touchdowns by two key players.

Subsequent to Ollie Lawrence's impressive score, Ford's consecutive three-pointers resulted in the home side entered the halftime break with renewed energy.

"The difficult aspect in those moments is, when the scoreboard says 12-0, we can stick to our plan and our philosophy the best way to perform is," Ford explained.

"We fought our way back into the game and we understood if we started the second half well, with the bench coming on, we would be in an advantageous spot.

"Although facing fifteen minutes to go, we found ourselves on our own line with a yellow card, thus we encountered obstacles in that instance too.

"In my opinion that represents Test rugby is - which team can handle during those situations superiorly."

Each effort came within a two-minute span while the number 10 who executed three drop-kicks in a win facing the Argentine team during the 2023 World Cup, showed all his international experience.

Ford hit two drop-goals for Sale in a Prem game conducted in tough circumstances versus Bath - this represents an ability he has extensively practiced.

"It [the drop-goals] are consistently planned," Ford added.

"Borthwick represents an outstanding manager since he continually advising me, and correctly so as three points is valuable at any stage of competition."

Ford marshalled his side brilliantly around the field the complete contest, kicking smartly - for both attacking and defensive purposes and identifying openings behind the visitors' backfield.

His trademark tactical bomb additionally troubled Beauden Barrett, who failed to regather.

After beginning England's win versus the Wallabies on 1 November, Ford relinquished the starting role to Fin Smith during the Fiji match seven days later.

Yet the most significant examination on paper this autumn occurred versus the experienced New Zealand team, with Ford regaining his position.

The national side, now on a run of ten consecutive victories, meet Argentina on 23 November creating intrigue to learn whether the coach returns with the alternative or persists with Ford.

Regardless of the selection, Ford proved with two years remaining from a World Cup that there is plenty of rugby left within him.