Ashton revels in vindication

Coach's willingness to eschew attack in favour of cautious gameplan earns rich dividends. By Hugh Godwin

There was the Clive Woodward way, with all the business management techniques and the hundreds of "critical non essentials" but this morning England are walking the Avenue Brian Ashton to a Parisian World Cup final. The popular theory was that Ashton had to rein in his naturally radical tendencies since becoming head coach a mere 10 months ago. The avuncular Lancastrian always responded that he was more pragmatic than the theory suggested. He need say nothing more for now, other than "see you at the final".

The uncomfortable insinuation all along was that Ashton had been forced to cut his skin-tight cloth according to the weaknesses of those in the white jersey. It may well have been true but when results matter more than anything, there is no way better than a winning way. "We talked with the players beforehand and agreed that controlling emotions on the pitch would probably win the game," said Ashton. "In the final few minutes we - by which I mean the players - did that better than France."

England began with a kick, and it got them a try by Josh Lewsey after 80 seconds. They ended with a kick; Jonny Wilkinson's dropped goal. And in between they played a straightforward territorial game. The rabble of many a match in the last four years had arrived in the last four of the World Cup with a game plan. The fact that France's was uncannily similar made it all terribly close with a cloying, uncomfortable tension.

Ashton was undemonstrative while his defence coach Mike Ford jerked and cursed through many a twist and turn. They got their substitutions right and have only to do it all once more to emulate Woodward's feat of 2003 in the most contrasting of circumstances.

In the immediate aftermath of victory Ashton generously batted the credit back to his players. "The last two weeks against Australia and France we have played against world class opposition," said Ashton, "

and the team have come through strongly at the end.

That shows a lot of mental strength." His captain, Phil Vickery, joked that Ashton did not now much about the "dark side" of the front five, but England have the "grizzly" forwards coach John Wells to worry about that. Ashton, said Vickery, "gives us licence to make decisions on the pitch." Okay so it is not quite the same as a licence to thrill, but England came out of their shells for about 10 minutes in beating Australia last week and needed a more familiar route to cracking the French nut here.

As France themselves proved in upsetting the favourites New Zealand in last week's quarter-final, kicking can induce a Pavlovian response in the opposition. The more Mike Catt kicked last night, high and low, the more France kicked it back at them.

Either that or they were forced to run with dull, desultory ball. That suited Ashton's team. France needed to generate their own momentum and that was not easy when Wilkinson and company tackled with ballistic force.

Kicking, though, it can be good and bad. Wilkinson flopped a poor effort into the French 22 early in the second half which wasted a good turnover position.

Ashton speaks lovingly of his time as Woodward's assistant in 2001 and 2002 when England's backs had "the courage and the mindset that nothing was impossible on the field of rugby". Andy Gomarsall, the creator of Lewsey's try - though Damien Traille's hesitation had plenty to do with it - could not see beyond the box-kick even as the hour mark approached.

The scores were a single point apart in France's favour so no one could blame the scrum-half.

Pierre Villepreux, the French guru of back play whom Ashton credits with teaching him more than any other coach, was in the crowd. They are old friends. In the late 1980s Ashton was at Bath and flew Villepreux across from Toulouse to take training sessions. They keep in touch by regular emails to this day.

Villepreux called England a little predictable. "But to do more takes time. To build the team you want, bringing young players through to play your way. Maybe after the World Cup he can do more with England."

No one including Ashton had dared look that far. He did what he thought was right for this tournament alone, crossing the channel with 13 thirtysomethings in his squad, and very few callow youths. "I stressed from the start that the squad was deliberately selected for the task we had to face. Players were in form yet had to earn their place." When the clinching dropped goal came, he sat quietly and took it all in.

At 61, Brian Ashton may have thought he had seen it all, but not quite.