Offside row as England miss a golden chance
EDDIE Jones refused to blame the TMO for England being left “devastated” at Twickenham as the brave attempt to shoot down the All Blacks ended in despair.
England had waited four years to have another crack at the world champions, and they lost out on claiming their scalp in agonising, controversial circumstances in the pouring rain.
South African TMO Marius Jonker made the crucial decision that Courtney Lawes was inches offside as he charged down TJ Perenara’s attempted clearance, leading to Sam Underhill thundering over the try line.
Had it stood, that score would have put England 20-16 ahead with an Owen Farrell conversion attempt to come. England’s players were celebrating as French referee Jerome Garces signalled the dramatic try but they were silenced by Jonker’s intervention. New Zealand held on to win 16-15.
Jones said: “Sometimes the game loves you, sometimes it doesn’t. We take the rough with the smooth. They were the better team but it was a huge step forward for us.
“We are devastated but it was a fantastic game of rugby. We had opportunities to win it and so did New Zealand. They took theirs.
“They had 800 caps out there, we had 400. They have been together for three months while we have been together for just three weeks.
and we are still on the road to being the best team in the world. As long as we are together the better we will get.
“We are also increasing the depth of the squad all the time. Sam Underhill was outstanding and showed he is a Test player. We also have Tom Curry who was injured last week so things are looking good in the back row.
“We are excited about where we are going and there’s a long journey ahead. Hopefully, it will continue to be up hill.”
Co-captain Owen Farrell said: “I thought it was a try but I probably would do. That’s rugby I suppose. These decisions can go with you and sometimes against you.”
World Cup winning boss Sir Clive Woodward insisted: “It was a 50-50 call which could have gone either way.”
New Zealand captain Kieran Read admitted: “There’s a lot of relief around the guys. It was a hell of a Test match. My heart was in my mouth a little at the end waiting for the TMO to make up his mind. Fortunately, it went in our favour.
“The English came straight at us. They are a fantastic side and credit to my lads for standing up to them and coming back strongly.”
Jones defended his decision to remove co-captain and hooker Dylan Hartley early from the action: “Dylan had a problem with his finger so we took him off.”
Jones also refused to blame Farrell for not kicking a couple of penalties when England were on the attack and trying to get a stranglehold on the contest.
He said: “We let the players make the decisions and they chose not to kick the penalties. It’s easy to be wise after the event.
“May be there were some decisions by the referee close to the line which didn’t go for us. Perhaps next time they will.
“There is always a lot of ebb and flow when you play New Zealand. You have to score as many points as possible when you are on top and on the attack.
“We played the final 20 minutes exceptionally well and won that phase of the game. That gives us plenty of confidence because the All Blacks usually put teams away in that spell.”