Six Nations 2016: Scotland vs England Player Ratings

SCOTLAND

15. Stuart Hogg: 6
Showed snippets of the undoubted danger he poses on the counter-attack, but in general the English defence marshalled Hogg well.

14. Sean Maitland: 5
He is a fine finisher but he is not a ‘something from nothing’ type of winger. With England’s defence so dominant, Maitland never looked like sparking Scotland’s ailing attack.

13. Mark Bennett: 5
He has been out with injury and it showed. Unable to make single break through the English defensive line, and although he ran some hard angles they were always easily read by the defence.

12. Matt Scott: 6
The most creatively successful of the Scottish backs, Scott also weighed in with 11 tackles as the English centres were generally well marshalled.

11. Tommy Seymour: 5.5
It was a similar story for Seymour as for Maitland, and although the Glasgow winger did work hard to try to get his hands on the ball as often as possible, he coughed up possession a whopping six times.

10. Finn Russell: 4.5
Kicked a lot of ball with a clear remit to give Scotland territory, but too often his radar was out. Read a Ben Youngs pass well to take an intercept on his own five metre line, but then kicked away the potential counter attack ball.

9. Greig Laidlaw: 5
His goal-kicking was as reliable as ever but the same old issues – namely his lack of speed to the breakdown and laboured service – were in evidence once again, and sapped Scotland of any momentum.

1. Alasdair Dickinson: 6.5
The scrum was solid for Scotland while Dickinson was on the park, something which noticeably changed when he was replaced.

2. Ross Ford: 5
Struggled with his darts and still can’t hook the ball at scrum-time – thankfully the latter didn’t really matter as Scotland, incredibly, only had one scrum on their own put-in.

3. WP Nel: 6.5
Like Dickinson, the scrum remained solid, if not dominant, while Nel was on the park.

4. Richie Gray: 6
For someone of his stature, you can’t help but want more from his ball-carrying game. Especially when the back-row is so shorn of players effective in that domain.

5. Jonny Gray: 6.5
Made 15 tackles without missing a single one, which is a decent stint by anyone’s standards. Carried a fair amount of ball but, like so many of the Scottish pack, made few inroads over the gainline.

6. John Barclay: 5.5
Much chat in the build-up centred on Scotland’s employment of two ‘genuine’ opensides, but apart from one good counter-ruck that led to a turnover, Barclay was unable to have any real influence on the breakdown.

7. John Hardie: 6
Like Barclay, Hardie’s breakdown nous was effectively snuffed out by a coordinated English effort across the park. The Kiwi was one of Scotland’s better ball-carrying forwards, however.

8. Dave Denton: 4.5
Denton’s work-rate was as high as ever but he simply lacks the physical presence to be an effective carrier at international level. It was a key reason the English defence could retain its lightening line-speed.

Replacements: 5
Gordon Reid had a torrid time at the scrum, conceding two penalties, and while the other replacements toiled hard, none had any great impact on the game. With both Laidlaw and Russell struggling to dictate the game, it was a surprise to see Hidalgo-Clyne and Weir left on the timber for the full 80 minutes.

ENGLAND

15. Mike Brown: 6
Always a willing runner, but never really evaded Scottish defenders. In 12 carries, he only beat one man – a solid, if unspectacular shift from the Quins fullback.

14. Anthony Watson: 6
One dancing run in the first half had Scottish hearts in mouths, but in general Watson didn’t see a great deal of the ball. His influence should grow as the tournament goes on.

13. Jonathan Joseph: 6
Like Watson, there was one occasion when Joseph pulled his trademark hitch-kick and threatened to cut loose – but couldn’t quite capitalise. Otherwise he was quiet, another indication of the fairly limited English game-plan.

12. Owen Farrell: 7
A very decent stint indeed in an unfamiliar position, including dictating and executing the wrap-around move that led to Nowell’s decisive try. Goal-kicking excellent, as usual.

11. Jack Nowell: 7
An easy walk in for his try but it was no less than the Devon winger deserved, after his work-rate had been immense for most of the game. Made some strong carries into traffic; he’ll hope for more space next weekend.

10. George Ford: 5
Some of his tactical kicking, especially in the second half, kept England in Scottish territory, but too much of it otherwise was aimless. There were also a couple of handling errors that belied his lack of confidence at the moment.

9. Danny Care: 6
The difference in speed of service between Care and Laidlaw was obvious, but there were very few trademark snipes from the Quins man. Instead, the focus was on tactical kicking – which he mostly did well.

1. Joe Marler: 6.5
Bread and butter at scrum-time was managed with minimal fuss. Little else to talk about.

2. Dylan Hartley: 7
Handled the added pressure of captaincy well, remaining calm throughout. Made his tackles and, other than one blip, hit his lineout jumpers. A good start to the regime.

3. Dan Cole: 6.5
Back to somewhere near his best with a solid showing at the scrum, and pilfered one bit of ball at the breakdown superbly. Conceded three penalties, however, more than any other player on the pitch.

4. Joe Launchbury: 7
Didn’t get his hands on the ball too often, but he made his tackles and, more crucially, used his weight well at ruck-time to consistently smash Scottish tacklers and jackal-ers away from the ball.

5. George Kruis: 7.5
Massive shift from Kruis, who finished as England’s second top tackler with 16. Also smashed his way over the line for a try and was a nuisance at the breakdown.

6. Chris Robshaw: 6
A quiet game for Robshaw, who went about his business with his usual efficacy. As an ex-captain, his communication around the ruck area was crucial at times.

7. James Haskell: 7.5
18 tackles made and none missed is a fine return for Haskell, who was noticeably busy. Along with the rest of the pack, he successfully nullified the threat of Hardie and Barclay at the breakdown.

8. Billy Vunipola: 8.5
Comfortably the best player on the pitch. Looked hungry from the start of the game til the final whistle, carrying the ball 22 times for 51 metres made – more than anyone other than the two fullbacks. Gave England the gainline supremacy that Scotland so lacked.

Replacements: 7
Billy’s brother Mako was heavily involved after coming on, scrummaging well, carrying with relish and showing a beautiful deftness of touch in the build-up to Nowell’s try. Ben Youngs’s cameo was less impressive, almost gifting Scotland a 75 metre intercept try. None of the other subs had a noticeable impact on the game but none let the side down, either.

By Jamie Hosie
Follow Jamie on Twitter: @jhosie43

Photo by: Patrick Khachfe / Onside Images