Playing Itoje at 4, with Haskell and Robshaw and Vunipola is a very strong unit.

Aa – and Daly. He will be great, but is finding the step up from the Aviva a big one.

Yes but they’re playing heads up, fast open rugby for 80 min and teams tire at the end of halves.

Only because they need to bring another prop on after Cole’s yellow.

If the tackler is expected to roll away immediately surely the tackled should be have to release the ball immediately?

Is the tackled player allowed to get tackled, roll over and present the ball? Or is it just one of those things that has become the norm like not putting in straight at the scrum?

Give the TMO glasses. Shameful. Citing and banning on the way. In fact the whole use of the TMO is getting daft IMO, why make a decision as the match official when someone elce can do it for you….

It’s starting to get as bad as football when a player can react like that to a bit of tickling. What happened to turning the man by using his nostrils? #Goodolddays

Indeed, in that clip it looks like he isn’t focussing on where his hand is going, but his hand pinches rather than a wide grab for a body/ shirt.

Can’t be any worse than Mike Brown’s boot. No intent, no problem. End of and beyond discussion, and no blood was drawn.

I’m stealing that comment!

That was a tad stressful! I’m hoarse after screaming at the TV in the pub.

The first 40 from England was very, very good I thought. Scrums were a lottery but the line out went well, the line speed in defence was very good (even Ford showed up Ok in defence). Wales looked like they’d run out of ideas but started the second half well. I thought we’d got away with it when Brown seemed to save our bacon when faffing about in our 22. The Biggar try seemed to really, really rattle them…what Ford was thinking kicking that away with Biggar bearing down on him is beyond me. The pass from Youngs wasn’t sympathetic, but still.

The Welsh bench made a huge impact…squeaky bum time. Francis was lucky I thought. Given that it was to the eye area I think he’ll get banned. Itoje was immense, for such a young man with few caps he looks at home on the international stage and gets through a lot of work.

Will be interesting to see how we front up in France next week with pressure on them to win.

Italy were bloody awful today. They played so well in Paris and loosing a game that they should have won seemed to make them give up. Wales will muller them next week.

It’s been a good weekend of rugby for me…Worcs won, Exeter beat the Falcons and denied them an LBP ans Wasps beat Tigers And England won.

To quote someone else, a Joubert is a bit like a Sorbet… but leaves a bitter after taste instead. I am just glad that the better team won for the benfit of everybody’s sanity.

Wales didn’t look like they’d ever met each other before and weren’t playing for each other like they normally would*

Wales missed more tackles than an average team makes completed tackles. Hopefully this is some sort of record and a trophy can be awarded to Edwards while posing for a photo with a face like Lunchboy’s recent MOM and an interview to shame Brown’s

I didn’t notice Farrell at all today in open play which is the best possible indication England played ok.

Marler appears to be emulating his RFU president and continuing the tradition of props pretending to be the thickest players on the pitch but ends up double bluffing. If he did make the comment CFH suggests then I am surprised Samson didn’t lamp him*

Itoje as MOM is the first unanimously agreed point in the history of this thread, or perhaps even in the entire wider STW. Expect a flurry of full screen ads to non-premium member as the forum melts down.

“Dominant” has been refined in the dictionary to describe a state where no one entity is particularly more skilled or powerful than the other. Example: England have the dominant scrum.

Ford actually played quite well and has a future in the side IMO. It is unfair to blame him solely for Priestland’s charge down as Simpson’s pass to him was suitably awful. Danny Care looks better when he comes on in the last 20, mainly because he hasn’t had enough time to stuff the game up himself.

I hope Warburton is OK. In other injury news, Brown has been taken in for tests after the rumour he may have a heart and be human after all.

Francis was lucky not to be binned at the very least. It is a bit like a referee deciding a punch to the face was a friendly greeting or way to celebrate a try and letting it go. I think that Joubert realised leaving Francis on would be the bigger handicap for Wales so let slide. He’ll probably get even bigger on his hols as Ritchie Rees will tell you that you don’t need intent (or even any evidence of making contact with the face) to receive a hefty ban.

Wales can score tries. This is so surprising I’ll just leave it at that.

Some people here still don’t seem to realise a perfectly fine pass can travel forwards on the pitch.

I don’t understand any of the love for Watson. Distinctly average. England should have played that guy Bananaman and had him line up opposite Cuthbert for a true battle of wits. Nowell works really hard everywhwere, has speed and lines to match his hard tackling but gets lumbered with the being at fault for Manu (and the secondfirstfiveeightswhoshouldn’treallybeplayingthere at other times in the game) leaving a lot of ground to cover.

The urban myth that the AB’s win games by throwing the ball around in a carefree manner for 80 minutes is still a thing. They absolutely dominate territory by kicking more, and more effectively than any other side while doing the basics exceptionally well and rarely making mistake. If this is hard to imagine, watch Wales in the first half and imagine the opposite.

Every Welsh fan said England would win before the match. See! We told you so, we are always right and that is all that matters 🙂

* to state the obvious most seemed to be playing for England instead

** not a reference to ferreting

Good an accurate summary from mindmap3 I think. Cole isn’t hurt and the game is (just about) won so no need for a fuss from us.

Those tries in the last need to have been prevented, for gods sake! But still, before the game if I hadn’t watched it I would have said the final score reflects the teams, occasion and location.

Good to see North back in some form, but Itoje, jeez if we could find a few more like him.

He’s bloody good. Would love to see him alongside AWJ on the next Lions tour!

Also, he’s a great advert for rugby. He’s a professional sportsman, who is also studying for a politics degree at SOAS. (See also Dr Roberts and many more). Why can’t soccer do the same? Why can’t they have people playing AND getting an education. After all, if Itoje had a career ending injury now, he’d still have a potential career. If A.N.Other soccerist had a career ending injury, many of them have been taken from school at 16 or earlier, with little or no longer term education.