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

He was called upon from the bench to help England secure a famous win against New Zealand, yet failed to convert a decisive kick and drop-goal as his side fell short by two points.

Following those costly misses, Ford needed to put in effort to get another shot to bring victory to the English team.

He saw just 25 minutes of action in the recent Six Nations yet multiple impressive performances, notably in the summer matches against Argentina and the USA while Fin Smith and Marcus Smith had departed for Lions tour commitments, reestablished him strongly among starting candidates.

At 32 years old did more than justify the coach's trust in starting him versus New Zealand, but the Sale Sharks playmaker delivered a player-of-the-match performance to help England to their initial victory versus the Kiwis at home ending a drought dating to 2012.

The pivotal moment occurred as Ford converted back-to-back drop-goals right before half-time.

This assisted England recover from 12-0 down to narrow the gap to 12-11 when the half ended, ahead of the manager's skilled reserves again delivered in the second half to assist the team to a comfortable 33-19 victory.

"Credit must be given to the senior players within our side, especially George," the manager commented. "In that moment as he scored those drop-kicks, he directed play just incredibly.

"Twelve months ago I thought George entered and performed really well [facing the Kiwis].

"One kick struck the post and he tried a pressured drop-kick, yet he performed excellently.

"He is a phenomenal leader, an outstanding athlete and an even better person. We are honored to feature him on our team."

Drop-goals 'part of the strategy'

The All Blacks started quickly during the match, surging to a substantial early margin with tries by Fainga'anuku and Taylor.

After Lawrence's impressive score, Ford's consecutive drop-goals meant the hosts bounced into the halftime break with the momentum.

"The tough part at those times occurs as the display indicates a twelve-point deficit, we are able to adhere to our plan and what we believe the optimal approach to compete is," Ford stated.

"We worked our way back into the game and we recognized were we to commence the second half well, as reserves joined, we found ourselves in a favorable situation.

"Although facing 15 minutes left, we ended up near our try line after a penalty, so we had challenges in that instance too.

"In my opinion that represents elite competition requires - which team can handle during those situations the best."

Both kicks occurred within close succession as Ford who nailed three drop-kicks in a successful match facing the Argentine team at the 2023 Rugby World Cup, displayed his complete century of caps experience.

Ford hit two drop-goals with Sale during a Premiership match conducted in difficult conditions versus Bath - this demonstrates a talent he has mastered thoroughly.

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

"Steve is such an outstanding manager since he continually reminding me, and correctly so as three points is valuable during any phase of the game."

Ford directed England excellently throughout the match the complete contest, executing intelligent kicks - both to compete and identifying openings behind the visitors' backfield.

His trademark high spiral kick further confused Beauden Barrett, who couldn't collect.

Having started the English victory versus the Wallabies in early November, Ford handed over the number 10 jersey to Fin Smith against Fiji seven days later.

However the greatest challenge theoretically this season came against the three-time world champions, so Ford returned to his position.

England, presently maintaining ten consecutive victories, face Argentina in late November creating intrigue to discover whether the coach returns for the younger Smith or continues with Ford.

Whatever choice occurs, Ford proved ahead of the next tournament prior to global competition that significant amounts of play remaining within him.