England battle through Storm Ciara to win Calcutta Cup in Scotland
Last year, these teams played out a high-octane 38-all draw at Twickenham. England stormed into the lead, Scotland roared back, and the hosts were left to scramble the draw. This game could barely have been more different, as it lacked any rhythm or flow, with conditions totally in charge. There was just one try, and it took 70 minutes to come, from England’s excellent replacement Ellis Genge.
Fifteen minutes before kick-off at Murrayfield, the forecast rain arrived, driving in hard with the westerly wind. It will be a while before that wind and rain clears off, but it certainly left its mark on the Calcutta Cup. The posts swayed, and the ball became ever more like soap. When Owen Farrell lined up a second half penalty, Genge was required to keep the ball on the tee.
Throwing at the lineout became desperately tough. Jamie George was twice not straight, Fraser Brown once. When Brown responded by getting inventive and throwing low and flat to the front, the ball did not travel five metres. He was taken off early in the second half as the errors mounted. With a debutant on the bench, George was required to go the distance.
The same was true of kicking. Farrell took every last second to line up his three simple first-half penalties, but still only landed one. George Ford missed a drop-goal and Scotland declined to kick for goal three times in the first half, going for touch instead. That felt a questionable tactic. They did it a fourth time after the break, but not a fifth. Finally Adam Hastings knocked over three points.
With Sam Underhill and Tom Curry to the fore, England had led 3-0 at half-time, and they absolutely would have taken that. They had been piling into the wind, and would have thought an easier half awaited them.
But they were error-strewn in the early stages of the second half, which Scotland dominated. George Ford knocked on and threw a wild pass to Jonny May. Willi Heinz twice stuck box kicks straight into touch, then Ford and Elliot Daly followed him.
The very heart of the team was creaking. This was a situation that required lateral thinking, and speed of thought. That has rarely been this England team’s forte, and it was not here either as they refused to just keep the ball in close quarters, instead launching it into the sky.
The Scots had not been much better, sticking to their ambitious blueprint. Not only did kickable penalties go to touch, but quick taps were taken at free kicks too. England came to their senses a little quicker, with Ben Youngs, Courtney Lawes and Genge all providing positive influences off the bench.
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Stuart Hogg was so close, for the second time in his two-match captaincy, to having a goalline fumble define the game. This time it was on his own line, as he appeared to fail to field a tricky grubber, from which Farrell touched down. But there was just enough downward pressure from Hogg; England were awarded a five-metre scrum rather than a try, and Genge crossed shortly after.
Farrell and Hastings traded two more penalties, which meant Scotland salvaged a bonus-point. It had not been the prettiest, but England will not mind one bit.
