Scotland 25 England 13
Scotland did England a favour on Saturday by showing them that they are not as good as they think they are, according to commentators.
The Scots’ 25-13 victory at Murrayfield might only have been the second defeat suffered by England in the almost two-and-a-half years of Eddie Jones’ reign, but it underlines what a growing number of people have been saying for months: that the current squad is not capable of winning the World Cup next year.
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When Jones took over in the wake of the 2015 Rugby World Cup debacle, the Australian outlined his strategy for winning the next tournament: there would be three phases, starting with laying the foundations. The next phase would be constructing a world-beating side, and the third would be to win the 2019 World Cup in Japan.
Jones pulled off the first phase, with England winning the 2016 Grand Slam and the 2017 Six Nations title, despite losing to Ireland in the final match of the tournament - but that defeat revealed cracks in his masterplan.
Some of the England players didn’t cope with the pressure put on them by the Irish, and the same was true in Saturday’s defeat to Scotland.
Basic skills began to break down, poor decisions were made and silly penalties conceded, as players withered inside the Edinburgh cauldron. As Lawrence Dallaglio says in The Sunday Times, England were guilty of naivety, softness and indiscipline.
Hitherto Jones has been loyal to the players he chose to help him build his foundations, but changes must be made before the trip to Paris on Saturday week to play a French side who, in beating Italy on Friday evening, won their first match in nearly a year.
Full-back Mike Brown, centre Jonathan Joseph, prop Dan Cole, second row Majo Itoje and No. 8 Nathan Hughes must all make way for new faces, say critics, but the biggest call Jones must make concerns his captain.
Dylan Hartley has been struggling for form all season, but Jones has stuck with the Northampton hooker, saying his leadership skills more than make up for a slight dip in performance.
But Hartley’s much-vaunted leadership skills were nowhere to be seen on Saturday as Scotland raced into a 22-6 half-time lead, against an England side who were unable to tighten their discipline or adapt their game to Scotland’s tactics.
Jones has kept faith with Hartley for the last two years, but the fact he substituted his skipper on 56 minutes against Scotland speaks volumes.
There were also reports of an ugly incident in the tunnel before kick-off, allegedly between England centre Owen Farrell and Scotland No. 8 Ryan Wilson. The Englishman was said to have been “enraged” about something, and the pair had to be pulled apart as they walked towards their dressing rooms.
The Six Nations committee have launched an enquiry but whatever the outcome, the incident is alarming. As commentators note, if England can’t even keep their composure walking into a tunnel then what chance do they stand in a World Cup tournament?
Six Nations results and fixtures
Round three results
- France 34 Italy 17
- Ireland 37 Wales 27
- Scotland 23 England 13
Round four fixtures
Saturday, 10 March
- Ireland vs. Scotland (2.15pm, live on ITV)
- France vs. England (4.45pm, live on BBC)
Sunday, 11 March
- Wales vs. Italy (3pm, live on BBC)
