Autumn Internationals Review - England 31 - 12 Argentina

Playing Argentina as the middle game in a trio of Autumn Internationals, in between playing Australia and New Zealand, is a tricky prospect.  With the greatest respect to the Argentines, their recent form and current circumstances (with a new coach and rumours of a split in the camp) have put them several levels beneath the traditional Southern Hemisphere ‘big three’.  So, after one decent scalp and with the prospect of the mother of all challenges awaiting the next week, the players in white could perhaps be forgiven for not getting as up for this one as they might do for others.  It’s a bit like trying to get excited about eating a cheese sandwich in between a breakfast of smoked salmon and scrambled egg and a dinner of beef wellington.

But not Stuart Lancaster’s England.  No, the likeable Yorkshire man has insisted on all sorts of techniques to restore pride in the shirt – letters from family and friends, videos of classic matches and speeches from other famous patriotic sorts.  How much is PR garbage, I’m not sure, but what I am sure about is that he has achieved his goal on getting an England side that is honest and sincere in its intention to become the best side in the world.  Although that may be a fair way off, it starts with beating strong – but limited – sides like Argentina, and doing it comfortably in a clear, decisive manner.

Within minutes of kicking off, three things became clear.  Firstly, Argentina’s alternate strip is not only sensible, but it’s bloody sexy.  England marketing and clothing ‘gurus’, take note.  Secondly, kudos to Dylan Hartley for a very smart moustache that makes his look like a WW2 pilot.  Thirdly, England’s defence is looking more and more assured under the stewardship of Andy Farrell.  OK, Argentina may not exactly be the All Blacks when it comes to attacking play, but they looked very ordinary as the hosts repelled early possession from the Pumas, forcing Nicholas Sanchez to kick long to the dangerous Mike Brown.  England built momentum with good carries from Brown and Joe Marler, and eventually captain-for-the-day Juan Martin Leguizamon conceded a penalty, which was slotted by Owen Farrell.

The lead didn’t last for long though, as Juan Imhoff charged down Lee Dickson in the scrum half’s 22 as he attempted a clearance kick in apparent slow motion, allowing the visitors to build pressure and force the offside from the defence.  Sanchez made no mistake with the kick, and it was all square.  But this was quickly looking like a game that was anything but even, as Chris Robshaw turned down a kick at goal to go for the corner and, after a couple of attempts, the ever-present Joe Launchbury piled over the line as the hosts mauled their way over from 5 metres out.  It was some statement from the England pack.

Up front the men in white were looking assured in the loose and dominant at ruck time, with Tom Wood and Launchbury looking as energetic as ever, but the Argentines did at least have the upper hand in the scrum, where Marcos Ayerza earned a penalty out of David Wilson on halfway.  Marcelo Bosch stepped up and slammed over the 3 points, but England came straight back into Puma territory.  Dylan Hartley carried strongly to set up field position, eventually giving Ashton what looked like an easy finish – but the Saracens man opted to step inside instead of going for the corner, and was held up by Imhoff and Lucas Amorosino.  It was a try which Christian Wade, Marland Yarde, or even Ashton 2 years ago would have finished with their eyes closed.  Running backwards.

Luckily for the much-maligned England winger, he had a chance to instantly make amends, and he did so by popping up a loose ball from the ensuing scrum into the hands of Billy Twelvetrees, who barged his way over from 5 metres to give England their second try and help erase the memory of being steam rollered the week before.  Things were to get even better for the hosts after Farrell’s conversion as they dominated the next 10 minutes as well, winning the collisions and generating quick ball which Brown, Wood, Twelvetrees and Hartley utilised to good effect, making significant yardage.  A short range lineout and series of drives eventually opened up space on the blindside, giving Ashton a clear run to the line.  The try was given, but replays showed that the Sarries winger was too busy sliding on his arse to actually put the ball down in time.  Seriously, what is the matter with him?  Nothing was the matter with Farrell’s boot, however, as he slammed over a superb conversion from the touchline, leaving the halftime score 24 – 6 to England.

The crowd found themselves enjoying a half time break and being able to reflect on one of the most impressive first half displays by an England side for a good while.  Their game had power through their key ball carriers, the pack were producing quick ball, and even the backline was showing some cohesion – even if not a huge amount of penetration.  Another half of that and there would be a real springboard for the game against the All Blacks.  Unfortunately, it wasn’t to be.

What was to be, though, was a complete switch off from the entire England side.  Lee Dickson was pinged for feeding at the scrum, Argentina mauled England’s pack into the ground and Sanchez added 3 points.  The hosts were starting to make mistakes they weren’t making in the first half and key players began to go missing; Tom Wood was penalised for lazily going off his feet, Dylan Hartley stopped carrying with the phenomenal energy he had showed in the first half and the backline began to overrun the ball on a regular basis.  In fact, as a spectacle, the game became so scrappy and eye-bleedingly bad that crowd’s biggest cheer was reserved for the sight of David Beckham in the stands on the big screen.  

Even the introduction of usually-electric Danny Care did little to improve England’s pace or cohesion.  Sanchez knocked over another penalty for the visitors, but in reality nothing of note was happening for either side.  Argentina were still creating next to nothing with the ball in hand, England were playing far to laterally and still mistakes were being made – the lack of intensity was worrying.  The two pluses, if any, for the hosts, were the way in which their scrum came back to dominate the opposition following the introductions of Alex Corbisiero, Tom Youngs and Dan Cole, and how their defence dealt with a typically physical but limited attack on their line by the Pumas.

But, just as the crowd were getting up to leave – as much to ease the boredom as to avoid the traffic – a successful lineout (which had become ropey following Tom Youngs’ introduction) gave clean quick ball to substitute Ben Morgan, who charged through some pretty flimsy tackling to run in and score from 20 metres out.  It gave the scoreline a pleasant gloss at the end of the game – 31-12 – but the reality was that the good work of the first half had all but almost been undone by the sloppy laziness of the second.

It looks like, once again, that England will go into a clash against the All Blacks with more questions than answers.  That may have worked for them last time out, but you get the impression that the All Blacks will be providing a somewhat sterner examination next week.  The men in white better start doing their homework.

 

England Player Ratings

Mike Brown – 7 – Not a spectacular as last week but still a reliable presence at the back and demonstrated his uncanny ability to beat the first man.  Just loves attacking.

Chris Ashton – 5 – OK, well done on the try Chris (although it wasn’t a try) but otherwise he looks too slow, indecisive and defensively suspect to be an international winger at the moment.  In my opinion, it would be more of a risk to play him instead of the inexperienced Christian Wade against the All Blacks.

Joel Tomkins – 4 – This may sound harsh, considering he did nothing particularly wrong, but your 13 has to offer something.  I’m yet to see him offer anything.  No step, no real pace and not enough power to excuse the lack of the first two.  There have to be other options.

Billy Twelvetrees – 7 – Got sloppy in the second half, but was sharp for the first period, taking his try well and distributing with precision.  There’s still more to come though, I feel.

Ben Foden – 6 – Challenged and chased gamely and looked to get involved wherever possible, but didn’t find the space to show what he can really do.

Owen Farrell – 6 – Another to fade badly in the second half.  His kicking and decision making was excellent in the first half, despite his distribution still being slightly wobbly, but made some glaring mistakes in the second 40.

Lee Dickson – 6 – Stuart Barnes may have been getting excited but I didn’t quite buy it.  His service was decent, no doubt, but he still made some errors at key times which handed initiative back to the Pumas.

Joe Marler – 5 – Carried with real energy and power but struggled in the scrum – which is no disgrace against Argentina.  Replaced at half time with concussion.

Dylan Hartley – 9 – A real statement from the Northampton man.  Ran from depth and with aggression and was mostly accurate in the lineout.  Loses the man of the match award because, as a leader, he shouldn’t have faded in influence as he did.

Dave Wilson – 5 – He didn’t play badly but he probably didn’t take his chance.  Carried reasonably well but struggled against Marcos Ayerza in the set piece.

Joe Launchbury – 9 – Often unseen, but always excellent.  One of the few players to not fade in the second period, he was everywhere – making tackles and a nuisance of himself in the ruck.  Scored a deserved first try.  Man of the match.

Courtney Lawes – 8 – Another very good showing from the rejuvenated lock.  Just when you thing he’s gone quiet, bang!  There he is.  Frightens opposition half backs.

Tom Wood – 7 – Loses a mark for conceding several kickable penalties in the second half, but he was very impressive early on, carrying hard and dominating the tackle area.

Chris Robshaw – 7 – Another all-action performance but he will be disappointed he was not able to rally his troops in the second half as they lost their concentration.

Billy Vunipola – 6 – Not quite as destructive as last week, but still a couple of big charges got the stadium shaking.  Decision making was a bit off at times.

 

Subs used

Tom Youngs – 5 – The new dad probably had his mind on more important matters, but a couple of skewed throws has put his starting spot in doubt.

Alex Corbisiero – 7 – Helped recover and, eventually, gain the upper hand in the set piece.  A welcome return.

Dan Cole – 7 – Along with Corbisiero, got on top of the Puma front row in the second half and probably cemented his starting spot for next week.

Geoff Parling – 5 – Despite being impeded, he will be a little disappointed at failing to take a couple of key restarts.  The misfortune of being injured may have cost him his place.

Ben Morgan – 8 – Made a statement when he came on by taking the ball at pace and from depth, scoring an impressive try in the process.

Danny Care – 1 – I’ve deducted 5 points for the vomit inducing moustache and haircut combo he is cultivating.  Aside from that, a decent showing but was unable to up the tempo.

Toby Flood – 6 – Solid, with some nice footwork thrown in.  Was desperate for some decent ball, but saw next to none.

Alex Goode – Not enough time to have an impact.

 

What else was happening in the world of international rugby at the weekend?

France 19 – 26 New Zealand:  The All Blacks came out on top in an ultra-physical battle against Les Bleus, with magic from Charles Piutau proving the difference between the sides.  The winger scored one and set up another for Kieran Read, whilst the hosts crossed through Brice Dulin.

Ireland 40 – 9 Samoa:  Ireland cut loose against a weakened Samoa side with a dominant second half display.  The men in green scored tries through Peter O’Mahony, Sean O’Brien, Dave Kearney (2) and Fergus McFadden.

Wales 15 – 24 South Africa:  Wales yet again failed to register a win against a Southern Hemisphere side, although they were rocked by injuries to key players Jonathan Davies and Adam Jones early on.  They were outscored 3 – 0 though, as Jean De Villiers, Bismarck Du Plessis and Fourie Du Preez touched down for the Springboks.

Scotland 42 – 17 Japan:  Scotland eventually put a gallant Japan side to the sword, scoring 6 tries in the process.  Tommy Seymour (2), Greg Laidlaw, Duncan Weir, Alasdair Dickinson and Sean Lamont all scored for the hosts, with Kenki Fukoaka grabbing a double for the Cherry Blossoms.

Italy 20 – 50 Australia:  The Wallabies bounced back from disappointment at Twickenham by hammering the Azzurri in Rome.  Ben Mowen, Tevita Kuridrani, Nick Cummins (2), Adam Ashley-Cooper, Joe Tomane and Israel Folau scored for the men in gold, with Luck McLean and Lorenzo Cittadini responding for the hosts.