England won the Calcutta Cup for the first time in five years by beating Scotland. In a tight game, Steve Borthwick’s side ran out 16-15 winners after Finn Russell missed a late conversion. Scotland had taken the lead early on through Ben White, but England quickly hit back through Tommy Freeman.
Huw Jones restored Scotland’s lead before half-time, however they paid the price for Russell missing all of his conversions as two penalties from Marcus Smith and another from Fin Smith handed England the win. Standard Sport’s Simon Collings was at Allianz Stadium to rate the England players...
Marcus Smith 6. Struggled defensively, especially trying to deal with Duhan van der Merwe. Solid with the boot this week and made all his kicks at goal. Tommy Freeman 7. Helped England reply instantly to Scotland’s early try by powering over from close range.
Ollie Lawrence 6. Had a mixed game. Made some great line breaks, but also missed tackles and guilty of some handling errors. Henry Slade 5. A bit like Lawrence, he had a mixed game. Blew a few chances with some poor hands. Ollie Sleightholme 5. Missed two of his six tackles and England’s defence looked shaky out wide. Could not make an impact when chasing kicks either.
Fin Smith 7. Kept the No10 shirt after starring against France. Put in a huge defensive shift - 16 tackles - and nailed a long-range penalty. Alex Mitchell 6. Came in for stick from the England fans as he continued to box kick. Not as accurate with the boot as he has been, but assisted Freeman’s try.
Ellis Genge 8. Excellent in the set-piece and won two scrum penalties in the first half. Caused problems in the loose and carried well. Luke Cowan-Dickie 7. Lineout was much better this week and England did not lose a single one while he was on the pitch. Made 10 tackles, too.
Will Stuart 7. Helped England dominate the scrum and won a penalty there in the second half. Put in a massive shift and played over 70 minutes. Maro Itoje 8 | Star player. Produced a few huge moments, both in the lineout and the loose. Seems to be revelling in his role as captain.
Ollie Chessum 7. England’s lineout functioned well with Chessum’s return and that was no coincidence. Worked hard defensively and put in a few huge hits. Tom Curry 6. Had a solid game but was forced off early in the second half due to injury and was limping badly. A blow for England.
Ben Earl 7. The pick of England’s back row that started. Carried well all game and gave the attack some punch, especially off lineouts. Tom Willis 6. Deservedly kept his place in the side after a good showing against France. Forced off before the break with a head injury.
Ben Curry (Willis 36’) 8. Won a turnover within minutes of coming on and had a great game. Did not miss a tackle. A monster performance. Jamie George (Cowan-Dickie 45’) 7. Another great stint off the bench. Kept the lineout functioning and battled well at ruck time.
Elliot Daly (Sleightholme 45’) 5. Guilty of twice kicking it out on the full when outside England’s 22. Chandler Cunningham-South (Curry 47’) 6. A bright cameo off the bench. Stole a vital lineout late on. Fin Baxter (Genge 58’) 6. Not the heroics of two weeks ago against France, but a solid showing.
