After being in and around the England set-up without ever breaking through, George Ford has admitted he is desperate to be a part of the Six Nations squad this winter.
The decision to leave Leicester Tigers this summer and step out of Toby Flood’s shadow will have taken with Ford knowing regular playing time before the Six Nations.
With so many talented fly-halves available to England head coach, Stuart Lancaster, Ford is battling with former school-friend, Owen Farrell, Gloucester’s Freddie Burns and Flood. Ford knows the next couple of months are going to be crucial for his chances of breaking into that England side.
With a World Cup coming to English shores in 2015, autumn internationals fast approaching in November and next year’s RBS 6 Nations also firmly on the horizon – Ford is desperate to catch Lancaster’s eye in a Bath shirt this season.
According to bet365’s rugby betting page, the youngster admitted it had been tough seeing the likes of Farrell and Burns ahead of him in the pecking order, but insisted he was now ready to challenge for a regular place in the England side.
“Watching them (Farrell and Burns) was, well, maybe not hard but I would think, arrgh, I want the chance to do that myself. Toby Flood is the England fly half and one of the best in the league. It was frustrating but at the same time, I understood.”
“There were a lot of people saying that you’re 19, 20, you have a long career. But I felt at the time I was ready to play more games,” admitted the 20-year old.
There is definitely no doubting Ford’s ability and many people who bet on rugby will insist that the youngster has as much chance as the other players in his position of making it into the Six Nations squad.
However, there is a long way to go until then and Ford will need to keep playing well for Bath if he is going to achieve his targets.