Five takeaways from England v Wales

Adam Kyriacou

Following a 33-30 win for England over Wales in their Six Nations game, here’s our five takeaways from Saturday’s match at Twickenham.

Defensive shift: Whilst the final scoreline might not reflect England’s tactical dominance, the soreness of the Welsh walking wounded would certainly reflect the brilliant physicality of the English defence. Led by the peerless flanker Mark Wilson on his return to international duty, who completed 22 tackles, every one of the back five of the pack hit the double figure count with each one of the back-row claiming 20 or more. The speed of their rush, led in the backs by Manu Tuilagi, gave Wales no room to move for 50 minutes of the game and absolutely stifled any intent they had to run the ball.

Mind the gap: Wales compounded their own issues early doors by taking that defence head on and losing the collisions badly. They’d have been better off to try and run around it, as they learned far too late in the game, albeit against 13 players. However, more worryingly for Wales, there’s a disconnect in their thinking; when they have the creativity of Nick Tompkins and finishing pace galore in their back three, the decision to continually either kick from 10 or take the ball from 12 into the welcoming arms of Wilson and his cohorts was quite bizarre. The more deconstructed the game became, the better Wales looked but they need to, like in the days of Warren Gatland, be patient enough to find the right way to win.

England’s last 10: You could say there were extenuating circumstances. You might claim there was a degree of confusion, but in those last 10 or 15 minutes, England’s inability to think clearly and calmly under pressure deserted them and you can be sure this will be the focal points of Eddie Jones’ debrief to his charges this week. Yes, there’s a case that Ellis Genge was a millimetre offside and that Manu Tuilagi was committed yet reckless, but they didn’t react to the game situation calmly and their errors compounded the pressure on their own teammates. Sometimes, it’s better to concede the try and restart the game than concede bodies to yellow or red cards. Both Tigers players need to have a good hard think about their own method of reacting to pressure as, on another day, their recklessness may have cost their side a Test match.

Set-piece: Wales struggled greatly to match the power of England in the set-piece, particularly that of Joe Marler, who won his side three penalties with brilliant technical and legal scrummaging. Time and time again, the Harlequin lifted his opposing tighthead long and high with extreme ease and Wales must be concerned that, in addition to their tactical frailties in decision-making, their scrummage is rocky to say the least. Lineouts went according to plan but, at this moment, the Welsh front-row stocks look sparse and Marler made hay.

Kicking the habit: There were 53 field kicks from the two sides in the first 40 minutes, with only nine of those finding touch. Some were sluggish (aptly created by caterpillar rucks) and laboriously cleared with little or no gain. Some were taxing on the opposition and created mistakes or momentum. But most were boring, aimless and inept. In the modern era sides are looking more and more to play without the ball but ironically, fans pay to see their sides play WITH the ball. Rugby is always going to be a mix of power, kicking and passing, but please, let’s get some balance back into the tactical advantages of the game and if this means a couple of law tweaks, so be it.

by James While

 

England