Six Nations 2012: England must grasp thorny breakdown issues Some of the torpor results from the time Ben Youngs takes to process the ball. One point made about scrum-half Youngs is that he needs to show he can control a game, but demonstrating this does not mean playing with slow deliberation - it means making the right decisions. The introduction of Lee Dickson after 50 minutes again stimulated England to get on to the front foot and keep the ball in hand. This was also aided by the contribution of No8 Ben Morgan whose natural ball-carrying offers something different to Phil Dowson. Both players made a strong case for being given starts against Wales and in the next three games, all against better opposition, England cannot afford sluggish, listless starts. It would be churlish and inaccurate to claim there were no positives from the Italian game. Alex Corbisiero is one of the few looseheads props to successfully counter the illegal arm-binding of Italian tighthead Martin Castrogiovanni. His tactic of shifting outside Castrogiovanni's right shoulder and driving it back square, out and then up effectively nullified the Italian scrum-destroyer. Allied to this was the collective refusal to panic when they conceded two soft tries just before half time. Such reversals, especially as the latter came very close to half time, might have destabilised some sides and the fact that England worked their way back without chasing the game is notable. Looking ahead to a game against a Welsh side that is also unbeaten and which has shown considerably more potency will be a much sterner test. Home advantage will help England but they have to get their forward runners round the corner in greater numbers to win quicker ball. Outside they are still operating in piecemeal fashion, but that is due as much to the fact that this is only the second game that many of the backline have played together as it is lack of ambition. To expect England to suddenly become the equal of their predecessors, when everyone is also crying out for new blood to be favoured, is intellectually dishonest. Their performances thus far have been disciplined and limited. They will soon find out how much more they really require to compete at the upper echelons of northern hemisphere rugby. Meanwhile, we also found out this last weekend that it is not only English rugby that has problems with old farts. The players and fans of France and Ireland were just five minutes from the scheduled kick off time in Paris on Saturday night when the game was abandoned due to a potentially injurious pitch. Although state of the art, the Stade de France does not have undersoil heating due to the fact that it is built on ground which contains potentially explosive pockets of methane. No heating, no game and plenty of anger for over 80,000 supporters. Had the game been played in the afternoon it would have gone ahead, but the decision of the French Federation of Rugby, in conjunction with French TV, to play at 9pm - with the temperature dropping further - meant it was always going to be tight. In future such decisions have to be made at least 24 hours before the game. If it turns out to be playable then so be it; at least that way everyone has time to alter their plans. As it was, the tens of thousands of paying fans had only the delights of Paris to sooth their disappointment; not a complete disaster, but not what they wanted.