England 40-16 Australia: Talking points from England’s Rugby World Cup quarter-final victory
We consider the important talking points later England procured a first Rugby World Cup semi-final with an win over Australia in Oita since 2007.
Eddie Jones’ side notched attempts through wing Jonny May (two), tighthead prop Kyler Sinckler and opposite wing Anthony Watson in a superbly-clinical display.
Here is exactly the thing stood out after a milestone Test game performance in Japan’s deep south…
It was England’s superiority in this facet and also the importance of turnovers if one component to the Test match has been siphoned.
The Wallabies, so famed for their work along with the skills of the likes of David Pocock and Michael Hooper within the ball, were outshone in this regard, and it proved their undoing.
Flankers Tom Curry and Sam Underhill – England’s own variation on Australia’s dual hazard that is openside-flanker – were the outstanding players on the pitch and also moments of enormous significance together with other members of the forward pack.
Underhill made 20 tackles, while Curry left the group and 16 combined to disrupt and flip over ball all game long.
Australia went 3-0 forward before Underhill got England to the game by the restart as his statement tackle about the Wallabies’ primary forwards ball company, Isi Naisarani, cut on the No 8 half and hauled Australia back after their positive start.
Wallabies tighthead Allan Alaalatoa knocked on in his 22 a stage later, from which England created two massive chances down the left: first, center Henry Slade neglected to use a four-on-two overload, until hooker Jamie George also failed to locate May within an overlap moments later down the blindside. May will score the first attempt.
Since the first half drew to a close, England consolidated their lead since Curry ended eight stages of Australia attack in their half with a turnover 32 minutes, even before Curry and Underhill combined on 33 minutes: Curry with all the massive hit, Underhill interrupting on the ground, to force a knock on and win back the ball again. The Wallabies were suffocating.
On 49 minutes, both force the maul Billy and George Vunipola combined to maintain Alaalatoa up and flip the ball over before England kicked three points and won a resultant scrum punishment.
For all Australia’s time with the chunk, it was becoming pinched or stolen once it mattered.
The most crucial moment in the match, and the example of this, was on 61 minutes. Australia, having brought the match back to a stage at the start of the second, were again to bring the match back to a score. Australia captain Hooper turned down regular shots at goal for kicking to touch for a lineout about 55 minutes attacking set-pieces and phoning that a scrum.
But it proved futile when possession from Naisarani metres ripped back out of his own try-line following nine phases, making possession back for England, before Will Genia knocked at the exact second ruck close halfway after England’s clearance kick.
Were Australia to have play then – as they looked likely to perform – the game would have been back to four points and also the Wallabies’ tails perking up. They were immensely deflated and on, there was no way back, as it was. Turnovers were the key.
Indeed, were it not to their knack of forcing turnovers and the nature with which they accepted their attempts, England could have been at a little bit of trouble – that is exactly what the stats point to.
Regardless of the scoreline – perhaps not a reflection of this quarter-final in most reality – on paper, England were second best in almost all applicable areas.
On the face of it it was a contest. Australia dominated ownership (64 per cent), land (55 percent ) gained much more metres in assault (568m to England’s 274m), produced more than twice the conveys (151 into 71), had more gain-line success (57 to 36), surrendered fewer penalties (five to England’s eight) and overlooked fewer tackles (12 into England’s 21).
As stated previously ball turned over at moments in areas that were critical and forced 12 Australia handling mistakes.
Head coach Jones spent the huge majority of the England warm-up observing and standing Australia intensely, practically ignoring his players. It was style and a focus his side took onto the pitch.
The caveat to such a performance, is that England will know they will get beaten at the previous four whether they are to give up to the All Blacks as much possession.
Give that spell time around the ball to New Zealand, that opportunity to gain metres and make conquer and line-breaks is a near-inevitability. A functionality: less defensive and more ownership protective is surely required.
It never ceases to amaze how much can change in a year inside game. This time last year, Jones’ England were away from the back of an awful Six Nations campaign where they had been swept apart from Scotland at Edinburgh, France in Ireland and Paris at Twickenham.
They embarked on a summer series where they had been dispatched in the first two Tests to go 2-0 down.
After being outplayed, and over South Africa at Twickenham, England claimed a scarcely-deserved victory in November of last year.
In each of these they seemed anything World Cup contenders. Yet, roll into 2019, shake things up a little in terms of team choice (George, Curry, Slade all-in ) and obtain some key players back from injury (Underhill, Tuilagi, Billy Vunipola, Watson) – England today look like the real thing.
It all started in February of this year, when they went to Dublin and beat Ireland – then safeguarding Grand Slam winners and off the back of beating New Zealand in the autumn – enjoying some magnificent rugby.
England came in vain that was positive, and now could not be more confident after brushing Australia aside.
At the opposite end of matters, the conquer presumably signifies the end of the colourful Australia tenure of Michael Cheika. They may have shown World Cup guarantee, but finally lost their two games : to Wales in Pool D and England.
They end 2019 with four losses from 10 Tests (four of those six victories coming from Argentina, Uruguay, Fiji and Samoa), whereas Australia’s 2018 campaign was their worst because Cheika occurred in October 2014, as they won only four from 13 Tests.
Previous full attempts beneath Cheika had yielded 10 wins in 2015 also only two losses, six successes in 2016 and seven wins in 2017. They haven’t enhanced under the Aussie that was under-fire and combustible.
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