Defeat at the hands of South Africa was to be expected, but the Six Nations looms as kill or cure for the coach’s projectA little perspective is always useful at times like this. How many people, for example, genuinely expected England to beat the world champions, South Africa, on Saturday? A good side winning an absorbing game of rugby does not necessarily mean the gallant losers are totally hopeless. England’s autumn has certainly been full of drama but is it really a full-blown crisis?A ‘crisis’, in sporting terms, refers to the indisputable point at which a team start to perform so far below expectations that there is no discernible hope. Yes, a fifth defeat on the trot is uncomfortable for a supposed top-tier nation. Yes, they continue to tail off in the final half-hours of too many big games. A limp finish is increasingly what springs to mind when analysts lie back and think of England. Continue reading...