England’s big names stand up and deliver
It was a night when all that mattered for England was victory. Not just to keep the series alive but to avert a week in the bunker when calls for Eddie Jones to be sacked as head coach would have been plentiful and piercing. England were set on revenge rather than redemption after losing the First Test having been in a commanding position. Performances can wait, although with the World Cup 14 months away, not for much longer.
England showed their intent early. Ellis Genge sought out Michael Hooper, the architect of Australia’s comeback the previous week, and flattened him. He then turned his attention to scrum-half Nic White, another influential figure in Perth, and pinned him to the ground.
Genge gave away a penalty for rough play, but he had made his point. Australia barely saw the ball for the first 35 minutes and having conceded an early try from a line-out scored by Billy Vunipola, they were hanging on. They gave away a crop of penalties as England extended their lead to 19 points, but their line held and they remained in touch despite not firing a shot.
They got a break just before the interval when Will Stuart was penalised at a scrum England looked to have been on top in. From the resulting line-out, they fashioned a try with their first attack of the match after Hunter Paisami forced his way over the gainline and while England still had a healthy half-time lead, their scoring in multiples of three left them vulnerable.
For all their pressure, England again struggled to create. A changed back division lacked coherence and while there were strong individual performances from Jack Nowell and Owen Farrell, the lack of shape was summed up by the move that failed to take advantage of Nowell in space on the right because the alignment was off and the passing was far from slick.
Nowell was tackled into touch by Paisami who had to make up ground but did so easily because of the laboured distribution: Nowell virtually took the ball standing still and he is a wing who gets into his stride rather than accelerates instantly.
Despite their dominance, England were outscored on tries. It did not matter in a match which had to be won by whatever means, but it will in the World Cup. Tommy Freeman was picked for his pace on the wing but the only chance he had was thwarted by Izaia Perese deliberately knocking the ball on.
Marcus Smith, who was again closely tracked, resorted to kicking to unlock the defence, but while a few had the defence scrambling, most offered easy get-outs. England were less predictable than the previous week with Smith and Farrell sharing the playmaking duties, but they still lacked penetration.
Their one try, like their first in Perth which served them until the last couple of minutes when the contest had been decided, came off the training ground. England are still struggling when it comes to the spontaneous, hardly surprisingly given the changes in their back division. Australia, with less possession, were the more threatening.
Where England were superior from Perth was at forward. They carried hard, led by Billy Vunipola, protected their ruck ball more effectively which allowed Jack van Poortvliet to dictate from scrum-half on his debut and their rousing defence reduced Australia’s back row to very few metres.
That reduced White’s influence and Lang Park, where the Wallabies had won their previous 10 Tests, was reduced to the chants of England supporters.
And yet, 13 minutes into the second-half, with the impressive Maro Itoje off the field, Australia were just five points behind having kicked a penalty awarded after Smith had been sent to the sin-bin for a deliberate knock-on. It was an offence very much like that of Dan Biggar for Wales the previous week in Pretoria, sticking out a hand and letting the ball hit it. Biggar was penalised but got away with what would have been his second yellow of the match and so was able to play yesterday.
The momentum, and the numbers, were with Australia. Not only was England’s tour on the line but also Jones’s future. It was at this point that Courtney Lawes stood up, turning over possession and winning penalties. Sam Underhill had by then left the pitch but Lawes ensured they remained on top at the breakdown and his challenge nine minutes from the end ensured that Australia did not come again.
Lions tours have over the years shown that a team which bounces back after losing the first Test are in a strong position although not necessarily favourites for the decider. It will be Australia’s turn to respond but they again suffered a number of injuries and are likely to have to make at least three changes.
England will not be motivated by revenge, but they will need to start the match in the same resolute manner, although their finishing will need to be more clinical. Their final score was 13 minutes from the end when Farrell landed his sixth penalty out of seven, but he should have been converting a try.
England attacked in waves and looked to have found a way through when Freddie Steward saw the line in front of him. He was mowed down by a prop, Angus Bell, whose tackle was so effective that the tall full-back was unable to reach out and score.
If it summed up how Australia make up for a lack of firepower with resilience, it also highlighted what England need to focus on in the next year. Their finishing is not good enough to reach the last four of the World Cup, never mind win it. Kicking penalties will only get them so far.
They have bought themselves time but this remains a team less than the sum of its parts. Big characters stood up and delivered in Brisbane, but England still have it all to prove. They have given themselves a break, a week, which can be a long time in sport.
“England were set on revenge, rather than redemption, after Perth defeat”