6 Nations 2012: Scotland 6 – 13 England (Round 1)

Same old Scotland, brand new England?

The losers should have won and the winners should have lost; the reaction from more or less everybody whether said aloud or not. Scotland lost after dominance throughout most of the contest whilst England defended for their first victory of the 6 Nations. Scotland cannot score a try, but I am not the person who is going to attempt at suggesting a remedy (as an Englishman myself).

The winners England have much to be talked about. Stuart Lancaster has got off to a winning start; and we got much of what was promised. I say England fans got 2 out of 3, commitment and pride was put back into the jersey, including defence and increased tempo.  England fans will have to wait for next week’s game to see if England can cut loose and build solid, going forward rugby.

Patience must be shown. It was 6 Nations rugby that took place and England was victorious on the night. A win is a win; the motto of Round 1 in this year’s tournament. Jeremy Guscott even before the game blew everybody’s bubble stating the weather will prevent the ‘rugby’ that fans dream England to be playing. And he of course was correct.

 ‘New’ England was better than the quarter final team that lost to France in the 2011 RWC; whether you like it or not. England was 16-0 down to France during half time in the World Cup; they were missing tackles and not looking up for the fight. ‘New’ England were ‘untried’ as a defensive unit, yet had telling levels of commitment and aggression that usurped performance levels at the Rugby World Cup.  The change in personnel has been telling from one tournament to the next, yet improvements were also traced in the 8 players that survived the England ‘make-over’ with their ‘switched-on’ defensive mindset; Ben Foden being the most observable improvement.

Brad Barritt and Mouritz Botha were standout defensive performers, but defence was strong throughout the whole squad. Lapses in defence did occur, which granted Scotland with ‘open-goal’ opportunities. This is an area that requires attention; combinations need time to mesh, it was not through a lack of defensive intensity.

There was a tempo to the defensive work which did translate into their attacking efforts; timely turnovers won by Corbisiero and Botha did set England on the attack. It was in these few situations where we did see England’s attempts to play expansive rugby. England players were running at the Scottish defence with intent, as well as the space on offer, which was refreshing. England had some success breaking through the middle with offloads in the first half, and Hodgson connecting with his wingers in the second. There was a ‘new’ tempo that was attempting to sprout.

Yet the attacking framework and opportunities created was not obvious and too infrequent. There were many occasion where England were penalised for holding on. Unforced turnovers did diminish their performance also. Ownership and securitisation of the ball is a fundamental quality required at any level of rugby, a ‘basic’ skill which Lancaster promised England will do well. An improvement is necessary here for any attacking framework to be put into practice.

This weekend, away to Italy will provide another stern test at the set piece, and question England’s ability to control their ball at the breakdown. A remedy for England’s problem here could be starting Ben Morgan at No. 8, as Dowson struggled to physically withstand the Scottish forwards at the breakdown and on the gain line. If not, may be give this unit another go? Give time to the players to gel? Let’s hope it is not as boring as watching paint dry.

Player Analysis:

15.          Ben Foden                          Reliable, improved defence, hope to see him attacking next week

14.          Chris Ashton                      Solid Engine shown in his chase and defensive work

13.          Brad Barritt                         Most impressive debutant. Extremely solid defence

12.          Owen Farrell                      Debutant; kicked ball away too often in open play, kicked penalties

11.          David Strettle                    Solid Engine shown in his chase and defensive work

10.          Charlie Hodgson               Fronted up in defence, charged down kick for try, tried to attack

9.            Ben Youngs                        Struggled to distribute with breakdown not being secure

8.            Phil Dowson                       Struggled with physicality at 8 & turned ball over a few times

7.            Chris Robshaw                  Captain, lead and carried well. Fronted up to Scottish physicality              

6.            Tom Croft                            England positioned him better to get his work-rate around the field

5.            Tom Palmer                        Experienced was obvious in the pack

4.            Mouritz Botha                   Defence was superb, yet  speed of rugby seemed too much for him

3.            Dan Cole                              Went well in the scrum, needs to be better in the loose

2.            Dylan Hartley                     Went well in the scrum, needs to be better in the loose

1.            Alex Corbisiero                 Went well in the scrum, was effective in the loose

16.          Rob Webber                      Unused, still waiting for 1^st cap

17.          Matt Stevens                     Went badly in the scrum, gave penalties away at the breakdown

18.          Geoff Parling                     Came on for debut, blended in well

19.          Ben Morgan                       Solid from the base of the scrum; pushing for starting berth

20.          Lee Dickson                        Debutant, blended in well

21.          Jordan Turner-Hall           Debutant, made a couple of good defensive hits

22.          Mike Brown                       Debutant, blended in well