EDGY ENGLAND GET GOING
Hosts are made to work for their win as Fijians rise to the occasion
ENGLAND’s chariot is rolling — but only just. The host nation claimed the win they needed to ignite their World Cup campaign last night, but this was not a performance to strike terror into the other top nations.
After the pomp of the opening ceremony at Twickenham, full of fireworks, lasers and flamethrowers, the lights briefly threatened to go out on stuart Lancaster’s side in this tournament opener.
They roared into a 15-0 lead after just 22 minutes to suggest that a potentially awkward Pool A fixture could turn into a procession, but ultimately it was no such thing.
Fiji were all at sea — apparently overcome by the occasion — for much of the first half, but once they gained a foothold and shed their inhibitions, they caused all manner of trouble for the home team.
Frankly, if they had a goal-kicker of adequate Test standard, they would have been in range of an historic upset in the closing stages.
Instead, England were able to make the game safe with a second try of the night by full-back Mike Brown before Billy Vunipola grabbed a last-gasp touchdown to secure a bonus point for the hosts.
Yet, for all the triumphalism in the stands, there would have been a hefty dose of relief among the Red Rose hierarchy.
In front of the watching world, there was a slapstick start to the tournament as a downpour just prior to kick- off made handling difficult. There were countless early fumbles but also a statement of intent from the English pack.
Following all the talk about Fiji’s forwards making great strides in the set-piece, the hosts totally dominated them in the first scrum just two minutes into the match. The upshot was a penalty which George Ford dispatched to register the first points of the tournament.
Moments later, Ben Volavola’s first shot at the other end glanced off the wrong side of a post. The Fiji f l y- half ’ s kicking at goal was unconvincing enough for him to surrender that role to giant wing Nemani Nadolo before the half was over.
Yet, the major problems for the Pacific is l anders l ay in t he one-sided contest up front. In the 13th minute, England simply bulldozed their way to a first try. From a lineout on the left, the home forwards pounded through feeble resistance with a drive which took them all the way to the line.
Referee Jaco Peyper awarded a penalty try and sin-binned Fiji scrum-half Nikola Matawalu, t he former Glasgow Warriors star, f or deliberately attempting to collapse the maul.
Fo r d landed t he straight conversion. It was 10-0, England had a man advantage and there was already a sense within the stadium that an unexpected rout was on the cards. That optimism among the partisan crowd was reinforced soon after when Lancaster’s men claimed a second try.
They came close when Anthony Watson was tackled into touch just short after a strong run and shrewd pass by Ben Morgan, but the hosts duly struck seconds later. After Tom Wood stole an overthrown Fijian lineout, the ball was worked out to Mike Brown wide on the left and with the defence in front of him hopelessly stretched, he surged through a gap to score.
This time, Ford’s wide conversion was off target but England were in the box- seat at 15-0 up, barely a quarter of the way through the match. Yet, after shaking off their initial stage fright, Fiji hit back.
First, Matawalu burst down the right from a scrum near halfway, veered outside Jonny May and scorched down the touchline. He was hauled down by May and Brown but slid on the wet turf, stretched and appeared to touch down. Yet, as Volavola was lining up the conversion, replays showed the ball had been dropped on to the line and the ‘try’ was ruled out.
The English reprieve was short-lived. Fiji finally justified the hype about their scrum by shoving the home pack off their own ball in the resulting five-metre scrum. Volavola sent a high cross-kick to the left corner and Nadolo claimed the ball above Watson to score as he landed. Volavola’s conversion was a horribly scuffed effort so, after another Ford penalty, Nadolo took over Fiji’s goal-kicking duties and was successful with his first shot to leave his side trailing 18-8 at the break.
Fiji’s growing belief was evident at the start of the second half as they continued to play instinctively with audacious off-loads and delicate chips behind t he home defence. In contrast, Eng land appeared to be ti g ht e ni ng
up and were being consumed by increasing doubt. Passes were thrown forward, overlaps were wasted. They were beginning to be dragged into a disjointed, broken-field tussle without any structure.
In the 48th minute, it was the visitors who had the next scoring chance, but Nadolo’s long-range penalty flew wide of the posts. Their play was often loose and sloppy, but it was daring and incisive. They were thriving as the game lost shape.
England’s next opportunity to re-assert themselves came when Ford sent a penalty deep into enemy territory on the left. The lineout was tidy and the drive by the home forwards was strong to start with but, when the ball was switched right, the move broke down.
Worse was to follow as replays showed that Tom Wood had grabbed Glasgow Warriors lock Leone Nakarawa around t he neck and thrown him to the ground, so Fiji were able to clear the danger.
At this stage, coach Lancaster (left) decided it was high time to start unleashing the cavalry from the bench. The Vunipola brothers were among those sent into the fray and Billy was soon in the thick of the action, hurling himself into contact. His direct approach helped the hosts re- establish forward momentum, which they were desperately lacking.
After Nadolo had missed another shot at goal, he made amends with a barnstorming run through four tackles and Volavola landed the resulting penalty to put Fiji within a score of their rivals.
But another England replacement, the ice-cool Owen Farrell, hit back in kind at the other end and eight minutes from time, May released Brown on the left for the try that settled English nerves.
The hosts seemed re- energised and, with the Fijians beginning to look leggy, England pushed for a bonus point, with their late efforts paying off in the final seconds when Billy Vunipola wiggled through to score, although another wait for confirmation from the TMO was needed before Farrell stepped up to add some gloss to the scoreline.