Thanks to a tough, intrepid performance from Scotland, lit up by the brilliant Duhan van der Merwe, England’s dismal Calcutta Cup record has deteriorated to one win in six. Steve Borthwick deals in hard facts, and that person will pour.
Then again, we know the England boss is unlikely to overreact. Expect him to take the brunt of it – glaring defensive errors, a rather scary last quarter and untimely laps of control – in stride.
In a contest featuring seven fascinating tries, two Englishmen should be encouraging for different reasons. First, to second by Max Malins.
Incisive step-play
Over the last two years, it has been extremely rare to see England break down their opponents with their level play – despite the big finish against New Zealand. In the 37th minute, however, the hosts launched a slick passage at Twickenham.
It starts with Finn Russell’s rushed clearance:
Look at Joe Marchant, who Borthwick praised for his pace on the edge of the attacking lines. The outside center goes around Freddie Steward so he can pass and make ground when Ollie Hassell-Collins helps to recover possession:
England take shape quickly, with Ollie Chessum leading a three-man pod. Owen is behind with Marcus Smith wider. In midfield, Ben Curry, Ellis Genge and Kyle Sinckler are organizing themselves:
Chess is going well, although at first Jack van Poortvliet seems more concerned with buying a penalty from Ben White than playing ball:
On the next step, Farrell feeds Genge…
…as England scurry around to probe the byline with Lewis Ludlam cutting a hard angle in front of Smith. The warden arcs across…
…but a cut-out pass doesn’t go to Malins, who cuts inside and crosses the 10-metre line:
Next, we see the options that this shape can provide. Sinckler goes up at first receiver with Genge on his shoulder and Farrell on a dropback option. Scotland need to keep a narrow carry but also be alert to midfield carry. England could provide even more width with Smith pushing around into a deeper slot:
When Sinckler finds Farrell, there are two passing lanes:
Farrell sends Alex Dombrandt, and England make the gain:
On the next step, Farrell goes behind Itoje to Smith and Hassell-Collins carries. Note Marchant’s position:
Sinckler steps up again on the next step. He looks up, and sees WP Nel and Pierre Schoeman in front of him. Marchant, meanwhile, leaves the margin:
Some fine footwork allows Sinckler to earn some encouragement:
At this stage, Smith and Farrell are split on either side of the wreck. The latter has another pod of three, containing Genge, Chessum and Dombrandt, on the right. Instead, however, Farrell darts inside and the young Van Poortvliet sucks in Ben White. Marchant has come off the wing to hunt that hole…
…and it hits him hard:
England are into the 22 and here we see the intent aimed at Nick Evans being implemented. There is a desire to go fast, as Chessum calls the ball at the first receiver:
Farrell and Smith are hovering around, but they don’t touch the ball. The highlighted players:
Chessum throws Genge behind Dombrandt, Steward hits the line to find Ludlam and the overlap is taken advantage of.
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Such slick ball movement, which complements a sharp shape, has not been a consistent feature of England’s attacking performances of late. And the sequence also highlights the selection dilemma facing England in the backline.
Are conjoined twins necessary? Could England have put together the same attack without both Smith and Farrell on the pitch? Sometimes, it must be beneficial to have two organizers and distributors working together, if only to pull defenders in different directions.
But it is remarkable that Smith only touches the ball twice in the run-up to the try. Farrell, clearly the main playmaker, does that five times. Perhaps the return of Henry Slade will bring a better balance – to England’s defense and attack – in this respect. Remember that injuries to Slade, Dan Kelly and Elliot Daly meant that England changed their plans.
The power of set piece diversity
Another subtle point Borthwick made before the game was that the props enjoy scrummaging in front of Ollie Chessum. Interestingly, as well as being a focus carrier for England, the 22-year-old also tackled England’s tight end props:
Here, five minutes into the second half, England are penalized at a scrum when Pierre Schoeman gets the hand of referee Paul Williams for “not pushing straight”:
As ever, the guilty side appears:
Genge’s elbow is in doubt, but England kick to touch and call a five-man lineout. Checker goes through from behind as Sinckler and Itoje lift Ludlam. But the interesting thing is that Dombrandt is in the receiver slot with Curry out in the middle of the field:
Richie Gray jumps across and is penalized for offside as he tries to stop a foul developing from an illegal position:
England get in touch again. This time, they call for a slightly different five-man setup. Curry is in the receiver role with Dombrandt in the middle of the field:
Grant Gilchrist and WP Nel at tailback are the men to watch in the Scotland defence:
As they dig in, honoring the threat of the fake, Curry breaks away. Dombrandt can get a good angle to find space in the ‘seam’ between the Scotland players and their back line…
…and England are clinical from close range. Sinckler, who took Chessum at the line out, and Genge work around. Sinckler gives pointers to his Bristol Bears teammate before Curry carries on with Ludlam’s support. Van Poortvliet turns the other way, finding Genge, and England score a try thanks to their varied set piece:
The hosts went 20-12 ahead, but were immediately put under pressure as Dombrandt spilled the restart and went on to win. Ben White would score for Scotland on the next possession.
Genge ended up with a massive 18 carries, which could indicate they were over-relying in the loose area – again, a more balanced midfield could have facilitated that.
As Russ Petty detailed on Twitter, England completed a staggering 207 passes, according to Opta, and conceded just nine turnovers.
With more impact and a few better decisions, they would be on the edge of Scotland. And 23 points would be enough to win the last three Calcutta Cup games, albeit under more difficult conditions.
Borthwick admitted to himself that he is facing issues, although there are bright moments for England to build on. The selection for round two against Italy will be very interesting.
Matching images courtesy of ITV