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During November 2024, national team playmaker Ford looked disheartened at Allianz Stadium.

He was called upon from the bench to support the hosts close out an historic victory facing the Kiwis, but instead failed to convert a crucial penalty plus a drop-goal attempt as England were beaten by two points.

After those expensive errors, Ford needed to put in effort to get another shot to achieve success for England.

He played only 25 minutes throughout the Six Nations tournament but a string of strong showings, particularly on the warm-weather tour versus Argentine and American teams when the Smith players were away on Lions tour commitments, reestablished him strongly in the starting mix.

The veteran player not only repaid Steve Borthwick's faith through his selection versus New Zealand, plus the club standout delivered a player-of-the-match performance to support England to a first win over New Zealand on home soil since 2012.

The decisive instant in the game Ford converted two drop-goals in succession right before half-time.

It helped England overcome a 12-0 deficit to trail 12-11 when the half ended, ahead of the manager's skilled reserves repeatedly excelled after halftime to assist the team to a convincing 33-19 triumph.

"Recognition should be offered to the veteran members in our team, particularly Ford," the manager commented. "That period when he converted those drop-goals, he directed play remarkably well.

"Last year I thought George substituted and competed really well [against New Zealand].

"One kick struck the post and he had a pressured drop-kick, however his play was outstanding.

"He is a phenomenal leader, a brilliant player plus a better human being. We are fortunate to feature him on our team."

Drop-kicks 'consistently planned'

New Zealand commenced strongly during the match, building a substantial early margin through scores from two key players.

After Lawrence's powerful finish, the fly-half's successive drop-kicks ensured England returned to the changing rooms with the momentum.

"The challenging thing at those times is, when the scoreboard says a twelve-point deficit, we must maintain to our plan and our convictions the optimal approach to compete is," Ford said.

"We fought our way back into it and we understood if we started the latter half effectively, with the bench coming on, we were in an advantageous spot.

"Despite having a quarter-hour remaining, we were positioned on our own line following a card, so we had challenges during that phase also.

"I believe this illustrates international rugby involves - which team can handle in those circumstances superiorly."

Each effort occurred within two minutes of each other as the fly-half who nailed three drop-kicks in a successful match against Argentina during the 2023 World Cup, demonstrated his full international experience.

Ford hit two drop-kicks representing Sale during a Premiership match occurring during challenging weather versus Bath - this represents an ability he has extensively practiced.

"These attempts are consistently planned," Ford added.

"The coach is such an incredible coach that he is always reminding me, and correctly so because three points prove important throughout the match of competition."

Ford guided his team superbly throughout the match the complete contest, kicking smartly - both to compete and identifying openings in the opposition's territory.

His trademark high spiral kick further confused Beauden Barrett, who failed to regather.

Having started the national team's triumph versus the Wallabies on 1 November, Ford passed on the starting role to his replacement for the Fiji victory a week later.

However the greatest challenge on paper this autumn was presented by the three-time world champions, with Ford regaining his starting role.

The national side, now on a run of an unbeaten streak of ten, play against Argentina on 23 November and it will be interesting to discover whether the coach returns to Fin Smith or persists with Ford.

Whichever decision is made, Ford established two years away before the World Cup that ample opportunity of play remaining within him.