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In November 2024, England fly-half Ford appeared disappointed at Allianz Stadium.

The replacement was brought on from the bench to assist the hosts complete a memorable triumph against New Zealand, yet was unable to score a crucial penalty along with a drop-kick as his side lost in a close contest.

Following those costly misses, the player was required to strive to secure another chance to bring victory for the national side.

He saw just 25 minutes of action in the recent Six Nations but a string of strong showings, especially during the summer matches of Argentina and the United States when the Smith players were absent for Lions tour commitments, reestablished him strongly in the starting mix.

At 32 years old fully validated the coach's trust in starting him facing the Kiwis, plus the club standout achieved a best-player showing to assist the home team to a first win against the All Blacks in their own stadium ending a drought dating to 2012.

The pivotal moment in the game Ford converted consecutive drop-kicks immediately preceding halftime.

It helped England bounce back from being down 12-0 to trail 12-11 when the half ended, before Borthwick's star-studded bench again delivered after halftime to help his side to a decisive 33-19 win.

"You have to give credit to the experienced players on our squad, especially George," Borthwick told. "In that moment when he converted those drop-kicks, he managed the game just incredibly.

"Twelve months ago I believed Ford substituted and competed really well [versus the All Blacks].

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

"He's an exceptional captain, an outstanding athlete plus a better human being. We are fortunate to feature him in our squad."

Drop-goals 'always in the plan'

New Zealand started quickly at Allianz Stadium, racing into a substantial early margin with tries by Fainga'anuku and Taylor.

After Lawrence's strong try, the fly-half's successive drop-goals meant the hosts returned to the locker room with renewed energy.

"The challenging thing in those moments comes when the board shows twelve to zero, we must maintain to our strategy and what we believe the superior method to play the game is," Ford stated.

"We got ourselves back into it and we recognized should we begin the final period strongly, with substitutes entering, we were in a good position.

"Despite having 15 minutes left, we found ourselves on our own line following a card, so we had challenges in that instance too.

"In my opinion that represents Test rugby is - who can deal in those circumstances most effectively."

Both kicks happened within two minutes of each other while the number 10 who successfully converted three drop-goals in a win facing the Argentine team at the 2023 Rugby World Cup, demonstrated his full international experience.

Ford successfully executed two drop-goals for Sale during a Premiership match conducted in tough circumstances at Bath - it is a skill he is well-practised in.

"The drop-kicks form part of our strategy," Ford continued.

"The coach is such an outstanding manager that he consistently in my ear about it, and appropriately since three points is valuable throughout the match of play."

Ford directed England excellently throughout the match the entire match, executing intelligent kicks - both in contestable situations and identifying openings against the defensive line.

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

Having started England's win over Australia in early November, Ford passed on the fly-half position to the younger Smith against Fiji the following week.

Yet the most significant examination on paper this autumn was presented by the multiple World Cup winners, so Ford returned to his spot.

The national side, currently enjoying 10 straight wins, face Argentina in late November creating intrigue to discover whether the coach returns to Fin Smith or maintains Ford.

Regardless of the selection, Ford demonstrated two years away before the World Cup that significant amounts of rugby left in him.