Six Nations Rugby - Upbeat England beat Wales in thriller at Twickenham
Last updated 09/02/2010 09:52:59
Six Nations Rugby Upbeat England beat Wales in thriller at Twickenham
England survived a frantic Welsh comeback to kick off their Six Nations campaign with a thrilling victory.
Under fire Martin Johnson had every right to feel uplifted after poor starts to England's previous recent campaigns and praised his team for they way they finished off the Welsh after the visitors threatened to repeat their 2008 Twickenham win with their frantic finish.
England supporters feared the worst as they watched a 20-3 lead become 20-17 before James Haskell's late second try.
"Our defending got a bit narrow at times but ultimately we finished it off," Johnson said. "Two years ago in similar circumstances we lost this game. I think both teams will get a lot better but 30 points against Wales is a pretty good start."
England led 20-3 early in the second half after converted tries from James Haskell and Danny Care, with Wales down to 14 men after the stupid sin-binning of Alun Wyn Jones for a needless trip.
But tries from Adam Jones and James Hook brought the visitors back to within three points before Haskell's breakaway effort five minutes from time clinched victory.
"I thought we played well," Johnson said. "At times we didn't and we let them back into it but I'm happy with the way the guys responded.
"There is a lot of pressure and hype for these games and we probably tried to play a bit too much at times. We lost our way a bit in the middle of the second half and gave them a chance to come back into it."
Haskell was outstanding and was clearly delighted after claiming his first Test tries on the occasion of his 23rd cap.
"We've wanted a win for a long time. There was great spirit shown by the guys and we are very pleased with it," Haskell said.
"When you play Wales they are always a tough physical side who make things very difficult for you.
"We didn't do it for the full 80 minutes but we are very excited about what we are doing and this is a step in the right direction for us. It's about possession and taking control."
Care was quick to highlight the significance of Jones's yellow card as England avenged defeats to the Welsh in their previous three Six Nations encounters.
"Obviously these sort of games come down to little errors," Care said," He stuck out a leg and he had to go for 10 minutes which gave us a big lift and it was great to get that try before half-time."
England will now turn their attentions to facing Italy, who lost 29-11 in Ireland, in Rome next Sunday.
"You see how much hard work everyone puts in but sometimes it doesn't come to fruition on the field," said captain Borthwick.
"I'm very proud of the guys. We work hard and sometimes it doesn't come to fruition but today it did. We've been a very tight unit and we are all learning from Martin Johnson. We must do better and that is what our focus will be going into next week."
Brian O'Driscoll was far less satisfied with the Irish victory against Italy. He described Ireland's display as "mediocre" after the Grand Slam holders laboured to beat Italy 29-11 in Saturday's Six Nations opener.
"We had a reasonable first half but never really got out of the blocks in the second half," said O'Driscoll.
"They put up more of a fight and made life difficult but we didn't really string things together. We didn't get any fluidity into our game and we were glad to hear the final whistle. It got a bit frustrating."
O'Driscoll admitted that Ireland had produced little of the fire that they exhibited against Australia and South Africa in November.
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