England got the monkey off their back by securing their first victory over South Africa for 10 years with a 37-21 victory. Here is who had a good and bad game for the red rose.
1 Mako Vunipola 8
Like his brother, Mako was England’s go to ball carrier, trucking it up into the Springbok wall again and again. He also made a number of big tackles in what was a real all-round physical performance. Always surprises me how good his handling is. Part of a scrum effort which had its wobbles though.
2 Dylan Hartley 6
Did his basics very well, although there were the previously mentioned issues at scrum time. However, he didn’t show up much in the loose despite being such an accomplished ball carrier. Still looks a little way off match fit and Jamie George made a difference in his 25 minutes on the pitch. You get the feeling if Hartley was not captain he maybe would not be starting.
3 Dan Cole 6
England’s quietest forward on the day. Put in a good shift for a prop and did a lot of hard work at the breakdown, but for such a big guy he doesn’t really carry much. Likely to make way for Sinckler in the Fiji match.
4 Joe Launchbury 8
The biggest praise for Launchbury, and his partner in the row, is that England did not noticeably miss Krutoje. Regardless of who he was replacing, however, Launchbury had an excellent game. One of England’s primary ball carriers and main target in the lineout, he got through a huge amount of work – as well as constantly putting pressure on Springbok kickers.
5 Courtney Lawes 7
On the occasion of his 50th cap, Lawes scored his first try. And what a classic second row try it was: flop on the ball over the try line. Aside from that, he also had a very tidy game, putting in some big tacklers and carrying well – that is something he seems to have really worked on. Loses points for a couple of handling errors and an avoidable penalty.
6 Chris Robshaw 8
Robshaw is truly the heartbeat of this England pack – he was the top tackler, one thundering hit on Rudy Paige in particular stood out, and had a very good game at the breakdown, making a number of important turnovers. Good link play with the backs.
7 Tom Wood 7
Two early penalties by Wood were concerning, but could be put down to over-eagerness on his return to international rugby. After that he settled down and put in his, as expected, solid performance. Tackled well and was a valuable extra option in the lineout. Like his Saints colleague, he has also improved his carrying and made important yards. First player to be subbed as Jones looked to try out Hughes in the back row.
8 Billy Vunipola 8.5
My pick of the forwards, Billy did the hard yards time and time again, with an impressive 18 carries in total. His work sucked in tacklers and made the space out wide for the others. Fielded kicks well and generally bossed the opposition. A pretty immaculate performance – he is fast becoming world class. His concrete skull needs a mention as well for inadvertently removing Etzebeth from the game.
9 Ben Youngs 9
My man of the match. This was his best game in an England shirt, his decision making was spot on and his kicking and passing was crisper and more accurate than we have seen for a long time. Resisted over attacking at the fringes as he has been prone to do in the past, instead picking his moments perfectly – he twice spotted the space around the ruck and sold the exact same dummy to Pieter-Steph du Toit (who is likely to be on the receiving end of some sharp words in training this week) and set up both Ford and Farrell’s tries.
10 George Ford 8
A slow start for Ford, who made a few errors early on, including one aimless kick into the opposing 22 and a skewed drop kick. Grew into the game and was much more accomplished in the second half – his kicking, along with Youngs’, kept South Africa pinned back. Stood up well in defence where he was targeted by the Springboks’ big runners and pulled the strings in England’s attack. Ran great support lines as well, one of which led to his try.
11 Jonny May 8
Showed his pace and was England’s most dangerous attacking threat. He worried the South Africa defence every time he touched the ball, although he does need to back himself a little more. A brilliant finish for his try in the corner, where he still had plenty to do after good handling by the backs, and it was his chase on Daly’s kick that forced the errors leading to Lawes’ try. Very good considering how long he has been out injured.
12 Owen Farrell 7
A quieter game from Farrell than we have seen recently, but still tidy and accomplished. Dovetailed well with Ford in attack and typically robust in defence, and also ran a good support line to score the last try. Missed a couple of kicks you would normally expect him to get however.
13 Elliot Daly 8.5
England’s other stand-out back, Daly was a threat all game. He danced through the line on several occasions, his link play was sharp and his chip and chase alongside May created Lawes’ score. South Africa were wary of his pace and it was his dummy run that made the space for May’s try. His monster boot also got its international introduction on the stroke of half time as he hammered a 55 yarder between the posts. How crucial could that be in future games? Done enough to keep Joseph out the starting 15 for another week.
14 Marland Yarde 5
England’s weakest performer on the day, Yarde looked unsure and hesitant. He gave away a few unnecessary penalties and didn’t really pose much of a danger in attack, as well as throwing a few ropey passes. Also didn’t look as quick as he once was. His place must surely be under threat from Semesa Rokoduguni or perhaps one of Joseph/Daly.
15 Mike Brown 7
Fielded South Africa’s kicks well and attacked with his usual bullish bravery. Defence was typically excellent, with one cover tackle on the Beast standing out. A few mistakes though and made the wrong decision over whether to kick or run a couple of times, and given his stand out contribution was not to touch the ball over the try line, it is perhaps not unfair to ask for more from him in the next game.
Replacements
6 Three debuts in this match for Kyle Sinckler, Ben Te’o and Nathan Hughes. All the replacements generally acquitted themselves well individually, although their introduction coincided with the second half tries scored by SA. Jamie George was probably the pick of the replacements and Nathan Hughes needs to watch his discipline – lucky to escape a yellow card.
Who did you think had a great game for England?
By Henry Ker
Photo by: Patrick Khachfe / Onside Images
I think our 8/9/10/12 is such a strength as a combination now, you can forgive any blips in club form (Ford at the back end of last year, Youngs towards the start of this year, Farrell not even playing 12 for his club) that the combo should be pencilled in for the next 8 games (3 AIs + 6N), fitness permitting. They each complement each other, and they’re developing a really important understanding that you can’t get quickly.
I think Daly’s inclusion is the template we can now expect from Jones for new players – certainly until the Lions tour forces him to pick a raft of new faces. He made the squad for the last two International periods, made the matchday squad a couple of times and got a few small opportunities – often out of position – before Jones thought he’d seen enough to properly appraise his pros and cons vs JJ’s. He had a very good game.
I think the back 3 were okay, but without Nowell and Watson I think Brown has to play this entire series to give us that solidity. He played well enough against South Africa, but I do sometimes if we’re missing out a bit in attack when you look at players like Hogg and Liam Williams, or Folau from the Southern Hemisphere. An attacking full-back could be the final piece in the jigsaw with regards to the back line, although I’m not sure we have a player of that type and calibre.
In the pack, I’d bring in Hughes for Wood. I think Hughes is both a better short-term fit and a more likely player to remain in the squad when injured players return; and if Eddie isn’t telling porkies and wants to “bore” Fiji, then he’ll need players who can carry and clear rucks tight to the fringes, rather than a more mobile Wood who can be more useful if you are looking to go wider. I thought Wood was okay, but certainly not on the level of 2016 Haskell, and probably not good enough to stop Jones or Williams getting a look in when they’re fit.
Hartley needs game time, that much is clear. I’m trying to work out if I’d rather he got 50 minutes against Fiji (to leave George, who needs international exposure, with 30) or went back to Northampton for close to 80? It’s probably best that he gets minutes at International pace, and those 50 minutes will be worth more to him, so he stays. I’d want my pack against Fiji to be the ones who went to play Argentina, so Cole would also stay in, but I’d hope to use Sinckler earlier if everything was going to plan.
We’re showing good depth in the tight 5. I’d say Marler, George, Sinckler, Launchbury and Lawes could probably compete quite well against most other nations, but I’d say everyone (first and second choice) needs to work on their handling if we’re going to get to the level of the All Blacks. It’s hard to rate our tight 5 players. At doing what they do (scrummaging, line-outs, rucking, mauling, hard carries), they’re all good to very good at it. At moving the ball and offloading and doing the things that we need to do if we want to become the best team in the World, they fall short. So Eddie Jones “six out of ten”, is probably fair in this area. Perfectly passable, but we need to see more ambition, more skill and more execution.
The score for Cole is probably about right but no mention that he really struggled in the scrum and gave away a stupid penalty for coming in at the side (again)
I thought the scrum woes were possibly more down to the (relatively) lightweight English second row, compared to the power coming through from the giant SA locks and Alberts and Du Toit on the flank
Worth noting that its not the first time Cole has had scrum issues when he Lawes locking behind him.
Not sure where this lightweight second row idea comes from its heavier than it usually is and the England pack outweighed the SA one despite their massive backrow.
Itoje 116kg
Kruis 118kg
Launch 122kg
Lawes 118kg
You could clearly see Coles was the one going backwards and struggling to keep his feet while Mako’s side was still and steady
The relative is in comparison to the SA locks Leon.
As I wrote, its not the first time I think Cole has had scrum issues with Lawes behind him. And its not necessarily down to weight either – for example Skelton is massive but not as effective as he should be in the scrum, possibly because he can’t get his frame in the right angle.
Maybe you have a point with regards to the performance of England scrum when Lawes is playing but the term lightweight is misleading as it is down to technique rather than weight and power. Either way Mtawerira was making the most of it with Engalnd’s tightside getting driven back
We’ve had issues with Parling and Lawes together, both ‘rangy leapers’ and neither providing serious grunt. Lawes and Launchbury are much more balanced as a pairing. Launchbury was packing down behind Cole on the tighthead side. Cole’s side was going backwards, so we can’t put this on Lawes.
Be interested to see an overhead shot, it looked to me as if “Beast” and Strauss were really attacking that side of the scrum and we just couldn’t handle the power.
Thanks Matt. So Cole was at fault after all
In which case I entirely retract my comments above!
Yes and that’s why south africa massacred the English scrum….
Bit harsh on Brown I feel. His tackle on the Beast was excellent and not one that I’d have put money on Goode making
As for the try, the reason he didn’t score it was because it was knocked backwards out oif his hands by the SA 10. However, the reason England were in a position to score the try was due to Brown’s following up and footballing skills.
Still has areas to improve but certainly looking more like his old self
There won’t be many better opportunities to try Goode out at 15. Fiji and Argentina must be the ‘Go to’ internationals IMO for doing that or else its Italy in the 6Ns.
I’d be tempted to give Slade a cameo as well!
Generally fair, I thought Yarde was really poor. He missed a couple of tackles, one early on that was on a man that was stood still. Roko needs to come in next week for me, he needs another chance.
Otherwise, I wouldn’t change anything. Daly looked great, I thought May was good too. Brown was mixed, but certainly wouldn’t drop him. I might consider it when Watson and Nowell are both fit, with Watson at 15 and May at 11.
No need to make changes in the pack, Wood was fine as we all knew he would be. I can see the temptation for Hughes, but I expect to see Wood in the final two matches so I’d rather we had the continuity.
With hindsight I can see the logic for having a wing/fullback with a kicking game (Yarde) for the Boks game and not exposing Roko …. but Yarde was really poor … has to make way next week.
I’d be tempted to start Hughes over Vunipola next week to keep Billy fresh and have a good look at Hughes
Agree with trying out Hughes. At the same time i’d try out George for a full one and possibly Goode too otherwise we’ll never know whether he cuts the mustard till its too late, its the WC final and Brown is off in the first five minutes with a bust toe or hamstring! Time to find out now Eddie!
I don’t think I saw more than 1/2 challenges in the air following a box kick. Roko is a proven threat under the high ball so think he would’ve offered a chance to retrieve a lot of these kicks. May warranted his selection with the try but Yarde didn’t seem to offer much.
Even though youngs set up 2 tries, I don’t think he can claim MOTM. His kicking was decent but his passing is still well below the standard needed. Too often, the 1st receiver would have to take a step back or catch a pass above their head slowing the momentum.
Launchberry was outstanding, gets around the pitch well for a big buy and offered the bulk needed.
When Itoje is fit, it could be an option to push him to back-row to accommodate Launchberry alongside Kruis.
Good problem to have. Like having Mako and Marler pushing each other hard for the loosehead spot, having Itoje, Launchbury, Kruis, Robshaw and Haskell (with a few others close behind) fighting for 4 starting shirts is going to drive standards up, and also give us a strong option on the bench.
Brown’s tackle on the Beat aside I saw little in his attacking play that changed my mind. Too frequently running directly at the defence instead of looking for space or trying to put others into space.
Maybe he should play at centre so he can make more tackles. As stamanjohn mentioned it would be nice to have a fullback like Williams or Hogg who does use the space better (we do have one but I won’t mention his name) but the danger is that these players are generally not as reliable in defence.
Watson at fullback with May and Nowell on the wings would definitely be worth a look.
Abendanon?
Yarde mediocre. Looks out of his depth and short of pace. The try against the ABs was two years ago and he’s clearly gone backwards since.
Roko needs a full outing and possibly Sinkler as replacement for Cole to combine scrummaging with greater ball-carrying ability which i understand Sinkler has in bucket loads.
Would also be tempted to play George for Hartley (handing the captaincy to Farell or Brown) as Clive Woodward said in The Sunday Mail so am plagiarising a bit here. Give the man a full game from the off to prepare him for a time when Hartley is unavailable (injury/loss of form or player fatigue being to blame)! Once again returning to the ethos that EJ not only has two in every position but players that have the match day experience of going toe to toe. Otherwise come the WC and Hartley has broken his toe for example England won’t have to rely upon an under-used bit-part second stringer when there are thirty minutes left in the WC final and there is all to play for!
I agree. Yarde looks a shadow of the player that played so well against NZ. It’s also not like we are struggling for wingers either. I would like to Roko or Wade play in front of him. Plus I bet there are a few handy players in the Under 20’s as well that could come into the squad for some experience.
I really like May though. His pace could put Nowell on the bench. Him and Watson would have to be one of the quickest wing combos around.
Rokodaguni. Have been calling for his inclusion for ages. However, I hope now that Eddie doesn’t take the piss by picking him to play against Fiji! For the amount of time he’s had to wait, one more on the sidelines wouldn’t hurt. Would love to see him get on against Argentina and Australia.
Why is it taking the piss to select him against Fiji. Surely he needs to get some international experience under his belt and a chance to prove his worth to Eddie before the Argentina game.
It would only be taking the piss if it was another single cap and he didn’t retain the shirt the following week
The fact we beat SA by margin that we did and that we are still not happy shows how far England have come over the last year. I think England were at about 6.5/10 performance. So to still win was a great achievement.
There are mitigating factors though. This is one of the weakest SA sides I have ever seen and they are really struggling. They might struggle to beat anyone on this tour the way they are playing. Though they are still bloomin strong buggers as they showed at the scrum. There one saving grace. Though that strength was the Achilles heal come line-out time.
I like Yarde. But he is clearly not international class. I think Roko has to take his place. Personally, I would love to see Wade given a chance, but there is obviously something not quite right with the guy as both Lancaster and now Jones have cast their eyes over him and said no. Shame as he has some real gas and quick feet. Must be his defence.
We are very lucky to have Lawes/Launchberry combo to come in to replace Krutoje. Just shows when you see how Wales struggle without the class of AWJ.
Roll on next week :)
I wouldn’t say their strength was the cause of the poor lineout performance they had 4 locks on the pitch and they “Chose” not to compete at a single lineout. Absolutely mental.
They won all of their own ball except for one massive overthrow from Bongi late on
Yeah but quite a few of their throws I would given as illegal as they were nowhere near straight. You are right it was weird them not competing. They must have been worried about creating mauls. Which is also weird considering that is one of their strengths.
I think it is as the commentators were saying. In that they didn’t really have a clue what they were doing half the time.
Agree with Yarde being poor and should be replaced by Roko, but have a sneaky feeling it might be JJ.
Think i saw somewhere that BV is injured so might well be that Hughes comes in, i thought he was quite poor though when he came on and wonder if Beaumont doesn’t deserve a go at 8.
Wood was solid and i think he will stay at 7.
Would like to see Sinckler get a start to see what he can bring and George must be due a start – although understand Hartley needs game time.