
"Another win for England, their ninth in succession, but the word comfortable is definitely not applicable. Only in the final quarter did the home side pull away on the scoreboard and, for lengthy periods, they were made to work extremely hard for their second victory in as many weeks. They will definitely need to find another gear to see off next Saturday's opponents New Zealand."
"This time it was their birthday boy, Henry Arundell, who shone brightest off the bench, scoring one scorching try and looking dangerous every time he touched the ball on his first appearance for England for two years. It was also a good night to be English and hyphenated. Chandler Cunningham-South, Manny Feyi-Waboso and Luke Cowan-Dickie all had forceful games, with the latter pair claiming two of their side's six tries."
"But rather like the pre-game minute's silence, which was interspersed with a persistent automatic tannoy message blasting out of the stadium's bowels, it was ultimately a mixed bag from an English perspective. This was a game they had earmarked as a chance for some experimentation but the physicality of a gallant Fiji side rudely interrupted some of Steve Borthwick's best-laid plans, not least the search for his ideal backline blend."
England secured a ninth consecutive victory but only pulled away in the final quarter, having to work hard for a second win in as many weeks. The team must find another gear to face New Zealand next Saturday. Henry Arundell impressed off the bench on his first England appearance in two years, scoring a try and causing danger whenever involved. Chandler Cunningham-South, Manny Feyi-Waboso and Luke Cowan-Dickie produced forceful performances, with Cowan-Dickie and Feyi-Waboso sharing tries. A calm evening featured strong contributions from Ollie Chessum and Ellis Genge, but Fiji's physicality disrupted experimentation and backline selection plans. Steve Borthwick faces decisions on fitting Marcus Smith alongside George Ford and Fin Smith.
Read at www.theguardian.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]