Rugby union: England’s Six Nations triumph
“It was predicted to be the most competitive Six Nations yet,” said Paul Rees in The Observer. “And so it is: for second place.” With a match still to be played, England are already champions – for the second year in a row. They sealed the title at Twickenham last Saturday by demolishing Scotland 61-21; it was their 18th successive victory, equalling New Zealand’s record for the longest winning streak by a top-tier rugby nation. The Scots started the match as England’s “only rivals for the title”, but it proved to be a “contest of unequals”: never, in any of the 135 games between these sides, have England scored more points. They “dominated from start to finish”, said Chris Foy in the Daily Mail. It was a “riot of attacking wizardry” – long after victory was assured, they twisted the knife “again and again”, scoring the last of their seven tries in overtime.
After unconvincing performances in their first three matches, England were desperate to prove a point, said Oliver Brown in The Sunday Telegraph. And no one had more to prove than Jonathan Joseph, who had been dropped for the previous game. On his return to the first XV, the Bath outside centre scored a hat trick of tries, “weaving mayhem in midfield”. A talented tennis player and dance student in his youth, Joseph stands out for his “lissom movement”. At 25, he has the kind of gifts that could make him the game’s next “superstar”. For all Joseph’s brilliance, this was “a complete team display”, said Sam Peters in The Mail on Sunday. Inside centre Owen Farrell scored 26 points – more than the entire Scotland side – and “combined beautifully” with fly-half George Ford. And the locks, Courtney Lawes and Joe Launchbury, provided a “rock-solid platform”.
If England defeat Ireland this weekend, they will overtake the All Blacks’ record, said Andy Bull in The Guardian. But they’re not the better team – at least, not yet. In their 18-match winning streak, New Zealand scored more points than England have managed, while conceding fewer; they also defeated more of the world’s top teams. Still, England’s achievement under Eddie Jones has been remarkable. When he took over as coach, they were ranked No. 8 in the world. Now, 16 months later, they’re No. 2. Scotland can only dream of such heights, said David Walsh in The Sunday Times. Before this disaster, they had been enjoying their finest Six Nations in at least a decade. Last Saturday, however, they seemed “beaten before they started”. The problem, as ever, is the Scots’ lack of physicality, said Michael Aylwin in The Observer. England kept “eroding their belief” by overpowering them in collisions. Until Scotland learn to withstand that kind of force, they will remain “merely promising”.