Player ratings: Anthony Watson stars in England win
Here's our England player ratings following their 46-15 victory over Italy at the Stadio Olimpico.
15 Mike Brown – A man whose game is all about doing the basic things right struggled to gain his composure throughout and those basics were weak by his own high standards: 4/10
14 Anthony Watson – A constant thorn in Italy’s side, his pace and footwork shredded the Azzurri defence twice. 8/10
13 Ben Te'o – His pace out of the line in defence was a feature of his immensely rounded game. A class act in everything he does. 7/10
12 Owen Farrell – His understanding with George Ford is beyond intuitive. Their ability to loop and hold the defence mesmerized the Italians time and time again. 8/10
11 Jonny May – May was once a fearsome runner but at last has become a fearsome rugby player. His incursions into the 13 channel on the opposite wing made two tries. 7/10
10 George Ford – When he plays flat and runs onto Ben Youngs’ passes, he’s a magician, but struggled to regain that momentum once Care came on. 6/10
9 Ben Youngs – A serious knee injury after ten minutes curtailed his involvement.
8 Sam Simmonds – England have looked for a linking pacy runner to balance their back-row since Richard Hill retired and now they’ve found that man; his tackle count and running lines were world class. 9/10
7 Chris Robshaw – A man happiest at the coal face, he mined the ball all day long. 6/10
6 Courtney Lawes – A player who used to run through walls now can run around them too. A consummate display of carrying, tackling and jacking. 8/10
5 Maro Itoje – Despite Italy’s strong showing in the line-out and contact, Itoje once more underlined his class. 6/10
4 Joe Launchbury – Alongside Itoje, the Wasp bashed, battered and carried all day. 6/10
3 Dan Cole – Often criticised, rarely admired, Cole did what he does best; the hard graft and the tough grunt. 7/10
2 Dylan Hartley – Much maligned in many quarters, Hartley’s loose efforts finally matched his tight game in a solid performance. 6/10
1 Mako Vunipola – A strong display in the loose was underpinned by another solid display up front. 6/10
Replacements:
16 Jamie George – Added pace and intellect for the final quarter. 6/10
17 Alec Hepburn – His first Test scrum wins his first Test penalty. 6/10
18 Harry Williams – Did enough damage to the belegured Azzurri front-row to put further pressure on the incumbent Cole. 6/10
19 George Kruis – Solid. 5/10
20 Sam Underhill – Not enough time to make an impact. 5/10
21 Danny Care – The master of the last 20 minutes, when he is forced to start early Care’s service and sluggishness around the base slows England down a little. 5/10
22 Jonathan Joseph – Showed in 20 minutes just what pace he can inject. 6/10
23 Jack Nowell – An impish try set up by his fellow Chief, Simmonds, brought the biggest smiles of the day. 6/10
by James While