Harry has last laugh in royal rugby rivalry as Scots trounced
After pals’ Jamaican wedding, the ultimate romantic retreat for Prince and his girlfriend
PRINCE Harry was all smiles yesterday as England demolished Scotland 61-21 at Twickenham – but the same could not be said for his aunt, Princess Anne.
Harry is patron of the English Rugby Football Union, while Anne fulfils the same role for the Scottish Rugby Union.
Before kick-off, the Princess Royal could be seen belting out Flower of Scotland. Nephew Harry was also shown on TV – but he was loyally singing God Save the Queen.
On the pitch, Scotland once again failed to produce their best form when it mattered. Hopes had been high that the Scots might record their first Calcutta Cup victory on English soil since 1983. But they were dashed as early as the second minute, when hooker Fraser Brown was sin-binned. England immediately capitalised by taking the lead through a try by centre Jonathan Joseph, his first of three in a victory that saw the home side claim the Six Nations championship.
Scotland captain John Barclay was brutally frank in his post-match assessment. He said: ‘I don’t know what to say, to be honest. We just didn’t turn up.
‘We got off to a bad start and continued. Our discipline was very poor and we gave away soft tries.
‘We are trying to move away from the tag of plucky losers but that wasn’t even that. We were useless.’ One TV commentator reminded viewers that none of the players on the park had even been alive when Scotland last beat England at Twickenham.
Among the crowd was a cast of rugby WAGs. Those supporting England included 29-year-old model Chloe Madeley – daughter of onscreen couple Richard and Judy – who is dating 31-year-old England flanker James Haskell.
Former Miss Scotland Ellie McKeating, 21, who is engaged to Scotland lock Richie Gray, 26, was also on hand to support her team.
THEIR relationship has been played out in the full glare of the public eye.
But it seems Prince Harry and Meghan Markle found the perfect place for romance away from prying eyes – inside a cave.
While in Jamaica for a friend’s wedding last week, the pair slipped away to The Caves – a hotel which has private dining rooms in caves decorated with dozens of candles – according to a source.
Harry, 32, and 35-year-old Ms Markle had been on the island for the wedding of the Prince’s friend Tom Inskip when they are said to have travelled to the five-star hotel, in the coastal town of Negril.
With three days alone after the celebrations, the Prince and his actress girlfriend are understood to have headed to the hotel, which has bedrooms set around clifftops.
But it is the resort’s dining rooms built into caves that offer the seclusion the Prince is known to relish – as well as the chance to for romance.
The ‘cave dining’ option, which costs about £250, is so private that waiters go down to the caves – covered in pink bougainvillea petals – only to deliver the dishes, otherwise leaving guests alone.
A staff member joked: ‘It is to give the diners some privacy to do those things that lovers do.’ More sociable couples can choose to have a private barman with a bar carved out of the limestone wall.
The food is based on local specialities – likely to be popular with Ms Markle, who has spoken of her love of Jamaica.
The menu includes lobster with sweet potato mash, ackee and saltfish, fried banana, and jerk chicken.
Also on offer are coconut pudding, fried pineapple and chocolate cake – as well as a selection of local rums. With a range of activities, Harry and Ms Markle could also have chosen to swim with dolphins, take part in cocktail making classes, or go cliff-diving, but they are understood to have kept a low profile.
Earlier in the week they had been staying at the Round Hill Hotel in Montego Bay for the wedding of Mr Inskip, one of Harry’s oldest friends.
A source at Round Hill confirmed the pair had booked in to stay until Wednesday but left the hotel quietly last Sunday using a private entrance.
During the wedding trip, the pair had spent most of their time in their villa. They emerged for less than two hours a day to see pals on the beach, then spent more time alone before showing their faces in the evening.
Onlookers said the Prince appeared relaxed, choosing to walk around without shoes most of the time.
With no signs of jet lag from his flight home the previous day, Harry appeared brighteyed last Thursday at the unveiling of the Afghanistan and Iraq wars memorial.
Yesterday as he attended England’s Six Nations victory over Scotland at Twickenham, Ms Markle was pictured braving sub-zero temperatures as she attended a yoga class in Toronto, Canada.
Asked about the Prince’s trip to Jamaica, Kensington Palace declined to comment.
‘To give the diners some privacy’