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The return of Chris Ashton’s swallow-dive try was over-shadowed by the manner of performance and ultimate victory as England’s much maligned rugby union stars finally gave their fans something to cheer about.
Former players-turned-pundits have been raving about the record-breaking performance although are they getting a little carried away?
On a weekend where England’s 7s were making a disappointing early exit in Dubai, primarily due to a shocking loss to Portugal in the group stage, there can be no doubt that the Twickenham result was the one that caught the attention.
The All-Blacks, with the colour of their shirts matching their mood, refused to blame either the long, hard season or the virus that had struck their camp earlier in the week. Both would be legitimate reasons for even a small percentage reduction in their overall performance. Minor changes, at this level, can have a major impact.
The statistics of the match barely describe the difference between the two sides, although the re-writing of the history books demonstrates the magnitude of the performance.
On the pitch, England marginally conceded the majority of possession and territory, won fewer scrums and made less offloads. Conversely, they made more tackles, won one more line-out and conceded fewer turnovers. However, in every category they were fine margins Ö except in the one that mattered Ö points scored.
The 17-point differential was England’s largest ever against New Zealand and was achieved against a team that had strung together 20 consecutive unbeaten matches. Remarkably, they failed to score a point in the first half for the first time since 1998. In scoring 38 points it is only the second time ever that they have passed 30.
This was a near-perfect team performance. The first 20 minutes set the tone as England hunted in packs disrupting the tackle areas and preventing the Kiwis from winning the quick ball. In attack, there was always support and the offloads as they went to ground always ensured the All Blacks were pushed backwards beyond the gain line.
Firstly, there was a true captain’s performance from Chris Robshaw – his leadership, energy and endurance shone throughout the match.
Manu Tuilagi took the plaudits for his interceptions and breakaways and Ashton’s picture was plastered over the back pages in the UK for his audacious swallow dive, his left hand precariously hanging onto the ball until he touched down. Tuilagi’s combinations with Brad Barritt had the kind of pace and inventiveness normally reserved for Saturday’s opposition.
Up front, Tom Youngs carried the ball and the manner in which man-of-the-match Tom Wood and the inspirational Joe Launchbury defended and supported at the breakdown was in sharp contrast to how the forwards have been playing.
Before we get too carried away, however, with one performance, it is worth returning to comments being made about this side before the match. New Zealand were massive favourites to win as England’s coach, Stuart Lancaster, and captain Robshaw, were being lambasted for poor decisions on the back of defeats to South Africa and Australia.
The optimism of spring had given way to a dark sense of pessimism after these results. Yet clearly there are many positives. England’s players have demonstrated a level of performance that they now need to maintain, initially throughout the Six Nations and then subsequently through to the World Cup Finals in 2015.
It is positive that so many of the strongest performances came from their younger players and those returning from injury. The performance and result provides a belief to players and supporters alike that they are moving in the right direction and are starting to gain the strength in the depth of the squad necessary to compete at this level consistently.
This result also has a significant impact on the Six Nations tournament. Before this result, the Northern Hemisphere teams had struggled against their Southern visitors. Although Ireland comfortably defeated Argentina, the only significant result was France’s defeat of Australia.
Some pundits have eulogised that this is a pivotal moment in England’s challenge for the World Cup. However, it is only history that determines such instances. If England goes on to win the World Cup we will be able to look back and confirm the importance of last Saturday. However, if they succumb in the Six Nations to a string of lacklustre performances, then this will have been nothing more than a false dawn.
In this series England played two matches in which they started as favourites. The first, against Samoa, was won at a canter. The second against a supposedly struggling Australian unit, resulted in a comprehensive defeat.
Following on from this result, England will enter into the Six Nations as favourites. They have beaten the world’s number one team as underdogs – rather than believe that they are now the finished product, let’s now wait and see how they do when they are expected to win.
And what about the vanquished?
I was reading reports from Auckland claiming the side now needs to be revamped. Rubbish! This All Black side has had a great year – this was simply one game too far.
They have produced excellent rugby and introduced a set of hungry young faces to refresh the squad, giving them exposure and experience – and put another way, if they were to play England again next week, my money would be on black.
