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Back in November 2024, England fly-half George Ford appeared disappointed at Allianz Stadium.

The replacement was brought on off the sidelines to support the hosts secure an historic victory facing the Kiwis, but instead was unable to score a late penalty plus a drop-goal attempt while his team lost in a close contest.

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

He played only 25 minutes during this year's Six Nations however a series of strong showings, particularly on the warm-weather tour of Argentina and the United States when the Smith players were absent for Lions team responsibilities, put him firmly back among starting candidates.

At 32 years old not only repaid the manager's confidence through his selection versus New Zealand, plus the club standout achieved a best-player showing to assist the hosts to their initial victory versus the Kiwis in their own stadium for the first time since 2012.

The pivotal moment in the game Ford nailed two drop-goals in succession right before half-time.

This assisted England bounce back from being down 12-0 to trail 12-11 by halftime, before Borthwick's star-studded bench once more performed during the final period to assist the team to a decisive 33-19 win.

"Recognition should be offered to the veteran members within our side, notably George," Borthwick told. "During that phase as he scored those drop-kicks, he controlled the match just incredibly.

"Twelve months ago I thought George came on and played very effectively [against New Zealand].

"A attempt hit the upright and he had a pressured drop-kick, however his play was outstanding.

"He's an exceptional captain, a brilliant player plus a better human being. We are privileged to include him on our team."

Drop-goals 'part of the strategy'

New Zealand commenced strongly during the match, racing into a substantial early margin with tries by Fainga'anuku and Taylor.

After Lawrence's impressive score, Ford's back-to-back drop-kicks ensured England bounced into the locker room with the momentum.

"The difficult aspect during those periods is, when the scoreboard says twelve to zero, we can stick to our plan and what we believe the best way to compete is," Ford said.

"We worked our way back into it and we understood should we begin the latter half effectively, as reserves joined, we would be in an advantageous spot.

"Although facing 15 minutes left, we ended up near our try line after a penalty, meaning we faced difficulties in that instance too.

"I believe this illustrates elite competition requires - which team can handle in those circumstances superiorly."

Both kicks happened within two minutes of each other as Ford who executed three crucial kicks in a successful match versus Argentina at the 2023 Rugby World Cup, showed all his 104-cap experience.

Ford converted two drop-goals representing Sale in a Prem game conducted in difficult conditions at Bath - this demonstrates a talent he is well-practised in.

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

"Steve is such an incredible coach since he continually advising me, and rightly so as three points prove important at any stage of the game."

Ford directed England excellently around the field the complete contest, executing intelligent kicks - both in contestable situations and in finding space behind the visitors' backfield.

His trademark tactical bomb further confused the New Zealand player, who mishandled the ball.

After beginning England's win over Australia during the autumn series, Ford relinquished the starting role to the younger Smith during the Fiji match a week later.

However the greatest challenge in terms of difficulty occurred versus the experienced New Zealand team, and Ford reclaimed his starting role.

England, presently maintaining an unbeaten streak of ten, face Argentina in late November and curiosity remains to discover if the manager opts to Fin Smith or maintains Ford.

Regardless of the selection, Ford proved with two years remaining prior to global competition that ample opportunity of rugby left for him.