Category: Rugby Union

The kicking game – whether coaches or players initiated it – saw off Scotland. But there’s a reason the crowd booed

About an hour after the final whistle on Saturday, England’s victorious players still swigging from the Calcutta Cup, Steve Borthwick was deep inside Twickenham discussing how his players finally got their hands back on the trophy. He was justifying their route-one tactics, explaining why England showcased so little with ball in hand; essentially, why they seemed to revert to a tactical approach that wins matches but few admirers.

Borthwick was asked a perfectly reasonable question – was it the coaches’ decision to do so or the players adapting on the hoof in response to Scotland’s gameplan? – and he did not answer it properly. He was bristling, looking for hidden meaning in the question that just wasn’t there. He was asked it again and once more failed to provide an answer. Make no mistake, Borthwick cares a great deal about how his team are perceived. The boos sting, the derogatory implications of “Borthball” bother him.

• England have favourable fixtures against Italy and Wales
• Steve Borthwick backtracks on George Furbank’s fitness

Tommy Freeman has admitted that England understand supporters’ frustrations amid a chorus of boos during the scrappy win against Scotland, but he believes Steve Borthwick’s team are still alive in the Six Nations title race after back-to-back wins.

Borthwick has revealed that Freeman’s Northampton teammate George Furbank is unlikely to feature in the final two games, against Italy and Wales, having suggested previously that he could, but England go into the second fallow week third in the table with favourable fixtures to come.

England regained the Calcutta Cup in a nailbiter

10 mins. Both teams are already trading penalties at the breakdown as their combative backrows spoil possession and win turnovers. The latest is Ritchie setting up a lineout platform in the England half.

7 mins. England hit back into the 22 via lineout. There are lots of phases after the initial drive, but they are one-out runners that are being contained by the Scottish line defence. Scotland are offside and on the advantage Freeman calls for the ball close to the ruck to force over under the attention of a couple of tacklers.

All the way across the field there are mouthwatering head-to-heads with players pushing for the tour to Australia

For British & Irish Lions hopefuls, time is running out. Three Test matches left to stake their claim, to catch Andy Farrell’s eye and book a place on the plane. Farrell is due to be at Twickenham on Saturday and he will be analysing everything. As a player that’s precisely where you want to be.

At this stage of the Six Nations, England against Scotland feels all the more pivotal for Lions hopefuls. We can safely say that there will be a large Ireland contingent and, unless something dramatic happens in the coming weeks, a relatively small group of Wales players. That congested middle is full of England and Scotland players and that makes Saturday’s match all the more mouthwatering.

Red Rose have lost four in row against Scots, but if they can back up Les Bleus win there will be talk of top-two finish

In recent times the Calcutta Cup has morphed into the “Scottish play” the English would rather not mention by name. One Red Rose win in seven attempts and four consecutive victories for Gregor Townsend’s side has certainly been an uncomfortable sequence for those who, for decades, regarded death and taxes as only marginally more inevitable than Scotland losing down south.

So much for the supposed dead weight of history. “What’s done cannot be undone,” murmured Lady Macbeth but she wasn’t privy to the skill and daring of Finn Russell or the killer finishing of Duhan van der Merwe. The last time England lost three or more consecutive home games in this fixture was in the early 1900s before Twickenham became their spiritual home.