MANU ROCKS!
England cruise again
THE match tickets proclaimed ‘this is no warm-up’ and on a scorching, record-breaking day at Twickenham, Manu Tuilagi and England proved far too hot to handle.
Never before have the national team scored so many points against the Irish. Never before have they beaten these dangerous opponents with so much room to spare. It was supposed to be an intriguing tussle between two of the leading World Cup contenders but it became a glaring, brutal mismatch.
Let’s be clear. This was not the main event. The stakes were not high. It is still the preparation phase. These fixtures are always distorted by wildly fluctuating intensity and motivation levels and training schedules. In this case, Ireland spoke afterwards about having heavy legs after a tough camp in Portugal.
Nevertheless, this was a statement by England. It was a staggering feat of dominance, on the pitch and on the scoreboard. On this evidence, they are prime contenders in Japan. With this line-up, make no mistake, they have sufficient firepower to claim the ultimate prize.
Physically, they were on a completely different level to their vaunted opponents. Billy Vunipola kept pounding into and through tackles. Joe Cokanasiga found space and scored two tries. And England had Tuilagi, their rampaging midfield trump card.
The Leicester centre ran amok. Ireland just couldn’t contain him. This was like a glimpse back to heady days past, in the early stages of his international career, when the Anglo-Samoan wrecking ball left the All Blacks and all comers trailing in his wake. ‘It’s scary if you have to mark him,’ said Eddie Jones. Countless Irish voices would no doubt echo that sentiment after yesterday’s events.
Tuilagi looked strong and fit and sharp, but his head coach warned: ‘There’s plenty more left in him.’ He made the same point about his team, saying: ‘We can get considerably better than this.’ That is a verdict which will send shockwaves far and wide.
England were imperious on every level, from their set-piece advantage to their dominance of every collision to their greater accuracy and intensity and creativity. This was one of the stand-out performances of Jones’s tenure, albeit with the caveat that it did not occur in a tournament.
Ireland were stunned by what happened to them. ‘ We looked dishevelled out there,’ said Joe Schmidt. ‘It is a serious problem.’
All the selections Jones made paid off handsomely. In particular, the decision to revert to the FordFarrell, 10-12 axis was a resounding triumph. The hosts were so organised and alert and efficient. Their kicking game was probing and consistent.
Their distribution was largely shrewd and assured. When they couldn’t blast through the visitors, they found a way around them. Poor Andy Farrell has rarely endured such a grim day. By the end, his acclaimed Ireland defence lay in ruins.
Up front, the Kamikaze Kids, as Jones labelled flankers Tom Curry and Sam Underhill, functioned superbly in tandem. The two opensides were hugely influential in attack and defence — aggressive, dynamic and relentless. The fact they combined for a second-half try, as Underhill sent Curry galloping clear to the line, capped a highly promising experiment. Expect to see them operating together again in Japan.
The sight of Mako Vunipola slowly trudging off not long after making his comeback from the bench was desperately worrying for Jones, but most of what he saw was hugely heartening. Not only did his experiments pay off, but his regulars stepped up too.
This was close to what may be regarded as England’s best line-up and they played like it. Maro Itoje was immense. The Lions lock delivered further proof that he has vastly improved his ball-carrying and one astute line took him clean through a gap and away to the posts for a second-half try.
Kyle Sinckler contributed imposing force and silky skills. Joe Marler’s first start since coming out of Test retirement was a triumph, especially when he was throwing his weight around in defence.
Elliot Daly had been retained at full back and he responded with his best performance this month. He scored a try and was noticeably more involved, coming into the line, making breaks and sending colleagues into space. One of those to profit was Cokanasiga. Given a greater platform than in the clashes with Wales, Bath’s giant wing touched down twice, the second try a long-range effort which saw him surge through half the Irish team and bring the house down.
Ireland had picked their strongest available side, but they weren’t strong enough for this exercise. Jordan L armour’ s early try suggested they could cause problems but ultimately it was quite the opposite. Their scrum was under pressure and their lineout malfunctioned completely, gifting a try to Luke Cowan-Dickie three minutes from time shortly after Bundee Aki’s fine finish had served as an isolated act of defiance on behalf of the shattered visitors.
In all, England scored eight tries, leaving Farrell Snr squirming in the stand, but it won’t be just the Irish who review this Red Rose masterclass and find cause for concern. All the leading countries will be wary. None of them will relish trying to stop Tuilagi and Co.
Of course, the magnitude of the result must be taken with a pinch of salt. It is much too early to hang out the bunting. Whatever the tickets said, it was just a warm-up. But as warm-ups go, it was truly molten hot.