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During November 2024, English number 10 Ford looked disheartened at Allianz Stadium.

He was called upon off the sidelines to assist the home side complete a memorable triumph against New Zealand, however was unable to score a late penalty and drop-goal as England were beaten by a narrow margin.

In the wake of those pivotal failures, the player was required to strive to secure another chance to bring victory for the national side.

He played only 25 minutes during this year's Six Nations yet multiple excellent displays, notably in the summer tour versus Argentine and American teams while Fin Smith and Marcus Smith were away on Lions tour commitments, returned him solidly as a starting option.

The veteran player did more than justify the coach's trust by selecting him against the All Blacks, and the Sharks star achieved a best-player showing to support the home team to a breakthrough triumph against the All Blacks in their own stadium for the first time since 2012.

The decisive instant occurred as Ford converted two drop-goals in succession just before the break.

This enabled the English overcome a 12-0 deficit to reduce the margin to 12-11 when the half ended, before Borthwick's star-studded bench again delivered after halftime to assist the team to a convincing 33-19 triumph.

"You have to give credit to the veteran members in our team, particularly Ford," Borthwick told. "That period as he scored those crucial kicks, he managed the game remarkably well.

"Twelve months ago I believed Ford entered and performed exceptionally well [against New Zealand].

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

"He is a phenomenal leader, a brilliant player and an even finer individual. We are privileged to have him on our team."

Drop-goals 'always in the plan'

The Kiwis began rapidly in the stadium, surging to a substantial early margin via touchdowns by Fainga'anuku and Taylor.

Following Ollie Lawrence's strong try, Ford's back-to-back three-pointers meant the hosts entered the locker room with renewed energy.

"The tough part at those times is, when the scoreboard says 12-0, we can stick to our strategy and our philosophy the optimal approach to compete is," Ford stated.

"We got ourselves back into the game and we recognized were we to commence the final period strongly, with the bench coming on, we found ourselves in a good position.

"Even with a quarter-hour remaining, we ended up defending our goal line after a penalty, thus we encountered obstacles in that instance too.

"I think that's what elite competition requires - who manages best during those situations the best."

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

Ford successfully executed two drop-kicks for Sale in a league contest conducted in difficult conditions against Bath - this demonstrates a talent he has mastered thoroughly.

"It [the drop-goals] form part of our strategy," Ford continued.

"Steve is such an outstanding manager that he is always advising me, and correctly so as three points is valuable at any stage of the game."

Ford guided England excellently around the field all game, executing intelligent kicks - both in contestable situations and locating gaps against the defensive line.

His trademark high spiral kick also bamboozled Beauden Barrett, who couldn't collect.

Having started the national team's triumph against Australia in early November, Ford passed on the number 10 jersey to the younger Smith for the Fiji victory seven days later.

Yet the most significant examination in terms of difficulty came against the multiple World Cup winners, so Ford returned to his position.

The national side, presently maintaining 10 straight wins, meet Argentina in late November creating intrigue to determine if the manager opts with the alternative or continues with Ford.

Whichever decision is made, Ford established two years away from a World Cup that there is plenty of rugby left within him.