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Back in November 2024, England fly-half Ford looked disheartened during the match.

The replacement was brought on from the bench to assist England secure a memorable triumph facing the Kiwis, yet missed a decisive kick plus a drop-goal attempt as his side lost by a narrow margin.

In the wake of those pivotal failures, the player was required to strive to earn another opportunity to bring victory for England.

He played only 25 minutes in the recent Six Nations but a string of impressive performances, notably in the summer tour against Argentina and the USA while Fin Smith and Marcus Smith were away on British and Irish Lions duty, reestablished him strongly in the starting mix.

The veteran player did more than justify Steve Borthwick's faith through his selection against the All Blacks, but the Sale Sharks playmaker delivered a player-of-the-match performance to support England to their initial victory versus the Kiwis on home soil since 2012.

The crucial point came when Ford converted two drop-goals in succession right before half-time.

This enabled the English recover from 12-0 down to narrow the gap to 12-11 by halftime, before Borthwick's star-studded bench once more performed after halftime to assist the team to a decisive 33-19 triumph.

"Credit must be given to the veteran members on our squad, notably George," the coach stated. "In that moment as he scored those drop-goals, he controlled the match remarkably well.

"Last year I thought George entered and performed really well [against New Zealand].

"A kick hit the post and he had a difficult drop-goal, yet he performed excellently.

"He's an exceptional captain, a superb performer and an even better person. We are fortunate to have him in our squad."

Drop-goals 'always in the plan'

The Kiwis started quickly at Allianz Stadium, surging to a twelve-point advantage via touchdowns by two key players.

Subsequent to Ollie Lawrence's strong try, Ford's back-to-back drop-kicks meant the hosts bounced into the locker room with the momentum.

"The challenging thing during those periods is, when the scoreboard says a twelve-point deficit, we must maintain to our plan and our convictions the best way to play the game is," Ford said.

"We fought our way back into the game and we understood should we begin the latter half effectively, as reserves joined, we were in a good position.

"Even with fifteen minutes to go, we found ourselves defending our goal line with a yellow card, thus we encountered obstacles in that instance too.

"I believe this illustrates Test rugby is - which team can handle during those situations the best."

Both kicks came within two minutes of each other while the number 10 who successfully converted three drop-goals in a win against Argentina at the 2023 Rugby World Cup, demonstrated his full international experience.

Ford converted two drop-kicks representing Sale during a Premiership match conducted in tough circumstances at Bath - it is a skill he has mastered thoroughly.

"These attempts is always in the plan," Ford stated further.

"Steve is such an incredible coach that he is always advising me, and appropriately because three points are crucial during any phase of play."

Ford marshalled his team superbly throughout the match the complete contest, kicking smartly - both in contestable situations and locating gaps against the defensive line.

His signature 'spiral bomb' also bamboozled Beauden Barrett, who mishandled the ball.

Having started England's win against Australia during the autumn series, Ford handed over the number 10 jersey to Fin Smith against Fiji the following week.

However the greatest challenge theoretically this season came against the multiple World Cup winners, so Ford returned to his starting role.

England, currently enjoying 10 straight wins, face Argentina this month and curiosity remains to determine if the manager opts to Fin Smith or maintains Ford.

Whichever decision is made, Ford proved two years away prior to global competition that significant amounts of play remaining for him.