Six Nations: Scotland 6 - 13 England: English looks speak louder than any words

SPEAKING with English players after another Calcutta Cup that promised much for Scotland supporters but delivered only disappointment was the most illuminating few minutes of an otherwise dark and dank start to the 2012 RBS Six Nations Championship.

It was not what was said so much as how they looked, notably their facial expressions following the question: “How comfortable is it playing against Scotland when you know they cannot score tries?”

England caretaker coach Stuart Lancaster has laid down a new law, seeking to inject a fresh dose of humility into his charges, and, in a departure from recent form, a healthier respect for and appreciation of their opponents. So, what we got in terms of responses to the above question were along the lines of: “It’s never comfortable, because Scotland are a very hard team to play against; they really made us fight for everything and they had us on the rack at times out there; their pack is as good as any we’ve faced in world rugby.”

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Even without this newfound humility, there was no reason to doubt the sincerity of those words when linked to the bruised and bloody faces, and indeed the limps, of the men uttering them. “But,” I asked, “No matter how much you might be struggling, how much possession and territory you might give up, you know that you can always beat Scotland, don’t you?” Cue smiles and glinting eyes as the players looked to each other for help with an answer. Doesn’t matter boys, the looks said it all.

Once again, Scotland dominated a side ranked several rungs up the ladder – Scotland sat in tenth position in the IRB world rankings and England fifth before Saturday’s game – and they opened them up sufficiently to score the tries that should have won the game, but they finished on the wrong end of the result. This was, as many had forecast beforehand, the best opportunity Scotland had to win the Calcutta Cup since the last success in 2008, but they handed it to England with their inability to complete the crucial, final act.

And yet this Scottish side put so much into it. Big Jim Hamilton showed them the way with a first-minute charge into the English 22 after exactly the kind of chaos that Scotland coach Andy Robinson had demanded. The England skipper Chris Robshaw was still querying afterwards why he had not been told that there would be a ten-second countdown clock displayed on Murrayfield’s giant screens, to be used by the match officials, and crowd, to count into the kick-off.

Scotland added to the mayhem by bunching their players in the middle of the pitch so as to give the impression that they were in no hurry to start the game either, then exploding into life when the countdown hit three seconds to go and launching into the England half with a passion that whipped Murrayfield into a frenzy.

Scotland’s 6ft 9in lock Richie Gray soared in the lineout, his partner Hamilton surged into the 22, a great Scottish scrum rattled the visitors and Murrayfield swayed to chanted exhortations of “Scotland, Scotland”.

England’s lineout was shaky, they were turned over on the ground, and Scottish full-back Rory Lamont and Chris Cusiter, the scrum-half, led attacks from deep, with pace, rightly testing the inexperience of an England side with three new caps.

But what we then began to see was that the dominance of a pack, and however much international rugby experience you’ve got, can’t compensate for an inability to put rugby skills into practice. Cusiter’s box-kicks and Parks’ longer range punts rarely gave his teammates a chance of regaining the ball, and rather than put pressure on England this too often handed them a route into the game.

The expert field position of full-back Ben Foden and his wingers, Chris Ashton and David Strettle, should not be underestimated as a factor in nullifying Parks’ kicking game, but the veteran fly-half failed to come up with alternatives, for instance exploiting the gap between the English defensive line and that deep-sitting trio, or kicking into touch, where at least Gray, Hamilton and David Denton could exert pressure.

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Cusiter’s frustration was clear as he and Robshaw came together in the 17th minute, each refusing to let his grip go as they emerged from a ruck. The scrum-half’s fury was visible long after they had been separated, by virtue of an English No 7 jersey that Cusiter’s clutches had turned into an off-the-shoulder number.

Scotland’s game-plan relied on quick ball and movement, yet they struggled to dominate at the breakdown and it was there that they were often slowed down or turned over. So much for pre-game suggestions that interim England coach Lancaster had not picked an out-and-out openside flanker.

Cusiter tried to ensure his teammates were aligned and ready before throwing a pass, but in a team that lacked firepower, reducing risk in this manner served only to heighten the difficulty level of creating penetrative attacks.

Owen Farrell, the debutant England centre, had already missed the first scoring chance of the day when he struck a penalty wide, but he made amends with a good kick in the 22nd minute that stemmed from one poor Scottish lineout – and a bewildering mix-up between the Lamont brothers, the elder, Sean, dummying a catch only for Rory to fumble it straight to David Strettle. It took a good scramble defence to limit the damage to three points, rather than seven.

The Scottish attack showed real tenacity. Denton enjoyed a superb first start for Scotland, flanker Ross Rennie was in fine form about the loose, and the whole team’s hunger for the drive towards the English 22 was rewarded by a Parks penalty in the 26th minute.

With Max Evans well into the game there was a good mix of conviction and intelligence about Scotland’s running, and a great roar enveloped Murrayfield on the half-hour when Cusiter caught Ashton in possession, Alasdair Strokosch and Denton flattened him, and Parks put Scotland 6-3 up.

Denton then ripped open the English defence on the left, Parks delivered an excellent Garryowen, and the half drew to a close with forwards Allan Jacobsen, Euan Murray, Hamilton and Denton rocking England on their heels. But the strong-willed and skilful visitors held out, another debutant, outside centre Brad Barritt outstanding in the rearguard action.

In the second half, Scotland needed maintain the work-rate, increase the tempo and intensify the pressure. What Scotland did was to gift-wrap England the confidence boost any new team longs for, just 25 seconds into the second half. The Scots secured Hodgson’s kick-off but did not protect their own fly-half, and when Parks went for a trademark flat clearance kick Hodgson was on him to charge it down and then dive on the ball for a try, the first of them that a Murrayfield crowd had seen in four Calcutta Cup encounters.

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Then, and this will sound familiar, Scotland compounded error with error, and it is only because England is still a young, novice side that the scoreline remained at 6-13.

After Scotland sent on Greig Laidlaw, Mike Blair, Al Kellock and John Barclay for Parks, Cusiter, Hamilton and Alasdair Strokosch respectively, the half-backs moved ball quicker, Evans came into the game more, and the pack rumbled on. And when Laidlaw chipped and chased into the space behind the English defence, he thought he’d scored.

The scrum-half had no right to beat his opposite number Ben Youngs to the ball over the English line, but it looked like he had done so. Referee George Clancy referred the decision to the television match official Nigel Whitehouse, and with each replay of the incident on the giant screens in the ground, it seemed more likely a try would be given.

Laidlaw’s hand was clearly seen to have reached between Youngs’ outstretched arms and touched the ball, his wrist stopping it from bouncing straight back up and so applying the necessary downward pressure. Whitehouse decided however that the try should not be awarded, perhaps doubting the extent of Laidlaw’s control of the ball, although we have seen tries given for less.

Had Scotland scored, it would have been a fair reflection of the game, and one could hypothesize that it would have given the Scots the confidence boost that they also so badly need.

As significant as this moment was, though, Scotland should have put the matter beyond doubt just minutes later when Rennie broke clear after an excellent Scotland attack. But with Blair and Laidlaw screaming for the pass on his left, and the trio facing a three-on-one with Foden, Rennie held on to the ball too long and was thumped by the superb full-back in the act of passing. England were inexperienced, but this was also Rennie’s first Six Nations start, and in that split-second it showed.

The match seemed to lose its energy at this point, with 15 minutes remaining, and the effects of a fast-paced game became visible in tired legs and minds. The mental side of sport is a great intangible, but it was writ large here. Scotland had played well on the whole and dominated large periods of the game, the way they had hoped and planned to, but it didn’t show on the scoreboard.

England had weathered storms and subdued the 16th man that is the home crowd and, as Barclay was penalised for obstruction, and Nick De Luca and Denton lost passes forward, the Englishmen visibly lifted, knowing they were in the home stretch.

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They also knew what everyone else knows – Scotland consistently fail to put teams away. Farrell added a penalty and the final whistle blew a horrible feeling of déjà vu into Scottish hearts, but left Lancaster, the former Scotland U19 cap, with a foundation stone on which to build a new England team.

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