SIX NATIONS SPECIAL
England lose their discipline when put under pressure
ENGLAND’S ill- discipline cost them the match in Cardiff and that could come back to haunt them — and it has also cost me a week in a Wales jersey courtesy of my Harlequins team-mate Scott Baldwin.
I had a little side bet with Scott, the former Wales hooker, and the loser of the bet has to wear the opposition shirt for a week of training, and unfortunately that’s me.
The pictures of me in a Wales shirt — which are sure to find their way out — are going to be tough to get rid of, and England will struggle to get rid of their reputation as a team that loses discipline when they are put under any pressure.
England showed how dangerous they can be when they used the ball in attack, but the penalty count was poor and it has been poor whenever they have been tested — against Scotland and now Wales. When put under pressure they give away penalties and now they are going to have a problem with referees.
Officials will think that when England start coming under pressure they are going to give away penalties and they will start to get on the wrong end of 50-50 calls.
You can get yourself a bad reputation and England have to get rid of theirs by being extra squeaky clean. As soon as someone has a perception of you as a team it’s very hard to shake it off. To be whiter- t han- white in t he t wo remaining matches, they are going to have to leave the ball in rucks unless it is 100 per cent on — and they have to be smart.
Their discipline all game was poor and that was what allowed Wales to hang in there and end up taking the victory.
The penalties they are giving away are stupid. The Jonny Hill one, which led to the Kieran Hardy try, was needless. First, he was diving off his feet and, second, he was knocking the ball out of the scrum- half ’s hands, and both of those look bad. England have got to paint those pictures better because it’s what decides Test matches
But the good news is after that England grew into the game and looked at their best when they started moving the ball around.
George Ford looked really good. He was standing flat to the line and bringing his ball carriers on to the gain-line, sitting behind the pod. Captain Owen Farrell, playing at inside centre, had his best game for England for a while, linking with Fordy and moving the ball to Henry Slade and the outside backs, and also showing his offloading skills.
Fair play to Farrell for stepping up this week and showing the character of a guy who is a top-class professional. He’s taken a lot of stick and has played well. But the ill-discipline has to stop.
France are up next and they are a brilliant team at taking those opportunities if you hand them to them on a plate.
The first two Wales tries caused a great deal of debate. The first one when Farrell was talking to his team while Dan Biggar kicked to Josh Adams is understandable.
If it’s just switching off for no reason you can’t forgive it, but you can forgive England for that situation because they have been called in by the captain who assumes he has been given the chance to talk to his team by the referee. England can feel a bit hard done by there.
For the second Wales try, I agreed with former Wales captain Sam Warburton on the TV commentary. It did hit Louis Rees-Zammit’s foot before Liam Williams scored and didn’t touch the turf. You can argue that is still play on, but you’ve got to play to the whistle.
Fair play to Wales for taking their opportunities and putting England under pressure to make them give away so many penalties. Also, well done to their forwards for standing up to England’s pack, which everyone before the match had said was a strength.