Maro Itoje lauds ‘brave’ England but claims France win was ‘by no means perfect’
Maro Itoje celebrates following England's 26-25 win over France
England captain Maro Itoje has lauded his side for their “brave” performance in their 26-25 win against France, but also claimed it was “by no means perfect”.
Steve Borthwick’s side ended a nine-game losing run against Tier 1 nations with the bonus-point win at Allianz Stadium, keeping them in the hunt for the Six Nations title heading into the first fallow week.
Maro Itoje lauds ‘brave’ England
This was arguably England’s most complete performance since the 2023 World Cup; and looks to have finally cured their second-half hoodoo following losses to New Zealand, Australia, South Africa and Ireland in their past four Test matches.
But, speaking after the game, new England captain Itoje feels his side’s bravery to go out and score tries was what got them over the line.
“Incredibly happy with the result,” he said. “The team has been working and been consistent throughout this period and I guess the result is a vindication of the hard work of the players, the coaches and all the support staff. We are happy with the win.”
Fin Smith leads England to shock win over France that blows Six Nations wide open
He added: “Steve told the group to be ambitious, to be brave, to go out and score tries, and our backs were incredibly brave, incredibly ambitious and they took the opportunities when on other days we might have tucked the ball and taken the conservative option.
“We just want to be consistent, we just want to get better. I have always been a supporter of the mantra, don’t get too high with the highs, don’t get too low with the lows. We want to enjoy the moment, this win is special, we worked hard for it and it wasn’t easy against a very good French team but we know there is so much in us.”
His comments also mirrored that of England boss Steve Borthwick, who lauded his side’s ability to “push that extra pass”.
“In so many ways there were a lot of similarities. The players have worked consistently to improve and today we just managed to score that try at the end and push the extra pass and they did that really well,” he said.
“Maro led the team exceptionally well so I am really with the players to get the win. Everyone wants that tangible reward as a mark there is progress being made. We believe there has been progress going on all the time.
“I am delighted for the players to get the win and I said to them I am proud of them but I am proud of them every game they keep going wanting to be a really good team.”
But, despite his side coming out on top after the final whistle, skipper Itoje feels there is still more to come in this Six Nations.
“There is a whole load we can get better at, this game was by no means perfect. Steve and the coaches, come the next training day, will give us an honest review like he always does, regardless of the result,” he declared.
“We are happy with the win,” he added. “But we know there are definitely things to get better.”
England now turn their attention to Scotland in round three, where they hope to reclaim the Calcutta Cup for the first time since 2020.
