Scots revel in surprise win over Auld Enemy
Scotland ended England’s Grand Slam hopes in Six Nations rugby by winning 25-13 at Murrayfield yesterday for a first victory over its fierce rival in a decade.
Consigning England to only a second loss in 26 games under coach Eddie Jones, the Scots finally lived up to their hype by blowing away their neighbors in the first half and scoring three tries in the process, two of them by center Huw Jones.
England came out for the second half 22-6 down – their largest halftime deficit in 136 meetings against Scotland – and scored their only try almost immediately through center Owen Farrell. It didn’t spark a comeback, though.
The Scots’ defending was brilliant, they dominated the breakdown and England’s chances all but ended when replacement Sam Underhill was sinbinned for a noarms tackle in the 66th, when the score was 22-13.
Flyhalf Finn Russell knocked over the penalty and the party could start in earnest in a fevered atmosphere at Murrayfield.
‘‘They were too good for us,’’ Jones said. ‘‘We just weren’t in the game for the first 40 minutes. We knew what we were going to get, but we just couldn’t meet the challenge.’’
Scotland’s last win over England in the Calcutta Cup was 15-9 in the 2008 Six Nations. They relied on penalties that day but this was a different story altogether.
Jones, a star in the making, kicked forward and gathered to ground in the 15th minute for Scotland’s first home try against the English since 2004.
His other try might end up being the best of the tournament. He broke through a tackle just inside England’s half and ran 50 meters before bursting through two defenders to score. He has 10 tries in 14 tests, having also crossed twice in Scotland’s humiliating 61-21 loss at Twickenham last year and against Samoa, New Zealand, and Australia in the autumn.
Winger Sean Maitland crossed for the other try – from a move started by Jones’ 60-metre break down the right. Russell, another of Scotland’s star players, floated a skip-pass over to Maitland, who dived in at the corner.
Scotland started with a dismal loss in Wales but rebounded by beating France in round two. Like England, the Scots have two wins
from three and can still win the Six Nations.
‘‘We were fueled by last year and the disappointment of the Wales game,’’ Scotland captain John Barclay said. ‘‘We said after that we didn’t become a bad team overnight. That win blows the competition open now.’’
Before the match, there was a scuffle near the tunnel involving Farrell, Barclay and a slew of players as the teams trotted off the field after the warmup.
In Dublin, Ireland edged closer to a St Patrick’s Day showdown with England after seeing off Wales 37-27.
The depleted Irish enjoyed 80 per cent of the possession and territory as they built a seemingly safe 27-13 lead going into the last quarter of a gripping match, but Wales rushed in two tries to trail 30-27 with three minutes to go.
Wales attacked from the kickoff and were making ground on the wings until, 30 seconds after time had elapsed, Gareth Anscombe threw a floater out to the right wing and Ireland speedster Jacob Stockdale intercepted and ran 40 metres to settle the result.