A neutrals view on Scotland-England

Let's be honest, it was a poor side from both sides in conditions that didn't warrant a sort of game like the one we saw today. Here's my take on how the game had the outcome it did:

For me, like Jiffy, Scotland look clueless in the 22. 20 tries in 25 matches says that they simply do not have the valuable composure to finish guilt edged chances that they create. And, there's the thing, they are creating these chances, they are breaking over the gain line, yet, still they cannot finish the opportunities presented to them. When Rennie missed the simple inside pass to Blair in the second half, it summed up everything that we have seen from Scotland under Andy Robinson's reign. The handling errors today were appalling today from both sides, but, Scotland made them in the worst areas of the field, just when they had England where they wanted them.

Dan Parks' selection should have sent the alarm bells ringing. As a Blues fan like many others, we cannot wait to see the back of Parks, as he cannot get the backs going, which is exactly what Scotland and the Blues want. What Parks needs to do is rather than changes his game, go to a club which has a gameplan revolving around it's forwards, and requires tactical kicking to earn them wins. Who that club is I don't know. Laidlow played well when he came on, but probably looked allot better due to Parks' performance. Cusiter was far to slow today at the breakdown, who then played it to Parks who again was far too slow, meaning the backs were collecting ball with no momentum, making it easy for England to clear the rucks efficiently and earning turnover after turnover. Scotland's forwards were outstanding today. A solid scrum in the first half, which did seem under more pressure in the second (probably not helped by Hartley standing up every single scrum), but was pretty sturdy throughout. Gray was back to his ball carrying best and his superb catching under pressure from Palmer and Croft at the line-out was also commendable and Denton was absolutely outstanding. But it must be demoralising to think they go through all that hard work and big hits to see their good work undone by error after error after error. Scotland need to continue their expansive game al la Edinburgh and sooner or later they will convert these chances. Once they score a couple of tries they should kick on and take their game to the next level.

England, for a team that had many uncapped players and just 30% possession I believe, were good in defence. They had a tight defensive line which Scotland were unable to take advantage of. However, it worked and I though Barritt was excellent in defence along with dan cole who I believe was quite good at the rucks.

But it is clear that this England side needs allot of work, and we probably won't see the true potential of this side until at least next years six nations. They too, were error stricken. Their scrum was poor first half as was their set pieces. Hodgson looked his usual nervous self under pressure, and despite his charge down and try, he still looks out of his depth at this level, just like he was the first time around. Youngs just isn't living up to the build people like the Daily Telegraph gave him, when in last years six nations game with Wales, they claimed: Youngs can be a better player than Gareth Edwards, with many of the comments supporting that view. He, imo, is what was wrong with many of the WC players, arrogant and thinks he's better than he is. Now don't get me wrong, the boy has talent. He can distribute quickly and can make some dazzling breaks, but he starting too show some fragility mentally, with his head going down quite frequently if he isn't having it his own way. Danny Care must be kicking himself for those extra couple of pints because I'm sure Youngs would be playing second fiddle to him.

England today dodged a bullet. Despite their excellent defence Scotland lost this game today. If they had taken their chances they would have won this game quite comfortably, but, as I'm sure people will be keen to point out, a wins a win and there's no good saying if's/but's and maybe's. Rightly so, but you would have to be a firm blooded England rugby fan to think Italy will be a pushover next week, I'm sure the majority are smart enough to agree and say that it won't be. Scotland need to move on and develop a mental edge which will allow them to take their chances in the future. Until then, they will still be battling Italy for the wooden spoon. A win's a win for England, and its a young inexperienced side with potential. If they win in Rome next week it will be an even more tasty affair when the Wales game comes around in game 3. I'm afraid Scotland, regardless of tomorrow's outcome, will be lucky to be within 10 of Wales next week.

Cymru am byth!! c'mon boys, give us something to shout about tomorrow.

" they are breaking over the game line,..."

You lost me at this point. Do you actually know anything about rugby?

englandglory4ever wrote:" they are breaking over the game line,..."

You lost me at this point. Do you actually know anything about rugby?

that was pathetic.

now hopefully we get the real attacking players selected.

england glory,

Writing this on my ipod, thought i'd got rid of most of the auto corrects on this. where's the facepalm button when you need it!!

what did you actually think of the game and obviously my views of the game itself??

how we manufactured a loss.

amazing.

get at least 3-4 of the a team up. that will help us a lot.

that was pathetic performance.

The result was never in doubt.

englandglory4ever wrote:" they are breaking over the game line,..."

You lost me at this point. Do you actually know anything about rugby?

Stop being such a douche.

If I hear another "Scotland lost this game" comment I will be very, very disappointed.

Here's the scoring system for beginners, the game starts level at 0-0, the winner will be decided by one team scoring more points than the other. In the event that the score is level at full time it will be a draw.

Does anyone who wants to find out a result from someone else ever ask "who lost the game today/tonight"?

England did what they had to, Scotland did not.

Apart from that, England defended very well, and there's not much else to be said about the game, it wasn't very exciting but I can't remember the last game between these two sides that was.

Thanks for listening.

Scotland too many handling areas and a flyhalf out of depth who kicks aimlessly and refuses to defend. Need an inside centre.

Back row look great, locks are wonderful, front row didn't scrummage as well as I thought they would, Murray doesn't carry well and can be lazy in the loose.

England cant take any positives other than there defence was alright. Farrell Kicked most of his kicks and Charlie Hodgson can charge down a clearance kick by the worst flyhalf in the championship. England didn't do anything really.

Scotland have to be the worst finishers in International rugby. They create more than enough chances but are unable to finish them...

PJHolybloke wrote:If I hear another "Scotland lost this game" comment I will be very, very disappointed.

Here's the scoring system for beginners, the game starts level at 0-0, the winner will be decided by one team scoring more points than the other. In the event that the score is level at full time it will be a draw.

Does anyone who wants to find out a result from someone else ever ask "who lost the game today/tonight"?

England did what they had to, Scotland did not.

Apart from that, England defended very well, and there's not much else to be said about the game, it wasn't very exciting but I can't remember the last game between these two sides that was.

Thanks for listening.

I hear where you're coming from. Apparently NZ can win the World Cup but can still be called chokers.

Having said that, the score was 10 - 6 to England and Scotland butchered a try which would´ve given them the lead. That feeling of a great missed opportunity (who knows what would´ve happened afterwards until the final whistle) has lead many to think Scotland had the game. Debatable but understandable. But England won in the end and those t-shirts will have to wait another two years (it´s not likely a Scotland win at Twickers). However, taking positives from the game, and selection choices, one can hope there will be no Dan Parks in the next test.

I think the original poster has it pretty much spot on - can you imagine giving France or Wales those possesion stats in Englands 22 what would happen.

Having said that there were positives for both sides- Scotlands pack were immense especially the back 5 - the problems wider out especially at 10 are still apparent.

The only think that impressed me about England was their dogedness - given the posession and terriotry Scotland enjoyed speaks volumes for Englands resolve and an away win anywhere in the 6N is an achievement in its self.

The early matches in the 6N are rarely the best as sides struggle to integrate but both sides have something to build on though for Scotland the effect on squad morale after yesterday should not be underestimated.

Both sides were poor.

It's very reflective that the only try came from a charge down of a poor defensive kick. Scotland seemed unable to finish an opportunity and England unable to orchestrate one in the first place.

England had a bright start, but looked like a disjointed team of naive youngsters. They lacked focus collectively, and seemed to have very little in the way of a game plan again. Defensively England were frail and disorganised and it's lucky we get to ease our way into the 6N with Scotland and Italy and didn't start with France and Ireland or we would have surely been annihilated. The thing that bothered me most was how badly England faded in the second spell. After the early second half score I was expecting us to take control of the game and build in confidence, but the reverse seemed to happen as Scotland gained more and more territory and possession.

Troubles continue in the tackle area for England as we are pedestrian and lack basic technique.

When you look at the stats for that game, missed tackles, tackles we had to make v tackles we required of the opposition, territory, possession, it has to be said again, if we'd been playing France, New Zealand or South Africa they would have run up a cricket score against us. I really hope that Lancaster has a few aces up his sleeve and that another week together brings a revolution in performance because one thing is for certain, the Saxons games have shown that we have absolutely no depth to call on beyond these players.

Lancaster please, a little less talking and a little more action this week. The yapping isn't working. Knowing about the pride of being selected is all well and good, but knowing about the team plan defensively and having a clue on attack are just as important.

Let's be honest no one is neutral.
Yesterday I was sat next to 2 of my Welsh mates down the pub & they were pig sick

Great result for England. No England fan should be under any illusions but the young team stood up to a very good Scottish pack.
We defended well & most importantly didn't give pens away at crucial times.

Scotland should get rid of Parks & they will cause teams problems over the course of the 6Ns.

"Lancaster please, a little less talking and a little more action this week. The yapping isn't working. Knowing about the pride of being selected is all well and good, but knowing about the team plan defensively and having a clue on attack are just as important."

A very dour and borish comment indeed.

England made much needed improvements in several areas yesterday largely due to the new coaching team. Its really sad if you can't see that.

As for the game England's forwards did well in the scrum but they and others were unable to keep hold of the ball for any length of time to get their attack going. Overall ball retention was the problem. This is a common trait in an inexperienced side as they find the collisions much more physical then they are used to. They will improve and when 4 or 5 injuries return I expect the level of experience in the side to increase along with the ball retention.

That was a great result for England to use football parlance.

BigTrevsbigmac wrote:Let's be honest no one is neutral.
Yesterday I was sat next to 2 of my Welsh mates down the pub & they were pig sick

Great result for England. No England fan should be under any illusions but the young team stood up to a very good Scottish pack.
We defended well & most importantly didn't give pens away at crucial times.

Scotland should get rid of Parks & they will cause teams problems over the course of the 6Ns.

##Nah I was with a Welsh friend who is genuinely pretty neutral in these things and pro-union and he was wanting Scotland to win just because they actually bothered to attack

PJHolybloke wrote:If I hear another "Scotland lost this game" comment I will be very, very disappointed.

Here's the scoring system for beginners, the game starts level at 0-0, the winner will be decided by one team scoring more points than the other. In the event that the score is level at full time it will be a draw.

Does anyone who wants to find out a result from someone else ever ask "who lost the game today/tonight"?

England did what they had to, Scotland did not.

Apart from that, England defended very well, and there's not much else to be said about the game, it wasn't very exciting but I can't remember the last game between these two sides that was.

Thanks for listening.

Thanks for the lesson PJ, I was wondering about that myself.

BigTrevsbigmac wrote:Let's be honest no one is neutral.

I thought I was.

"If I hear another "Scotland lost this game" comment I will be very, very disappointed"

eirebilly cant stop saying it- the guy sounds like a parrot. its not gonna stop for a long time- well offcourse untill england beat italy. then the next set of excuses will come out-- yawwwnn

""Lancaster please, a little less talking and a little more action this week. The yapping isn't working. Knowing about the pride of being selected is all well and good, but knowing about the team plan defensively and having a clue on attack are just as important."

A very dour and borish comment indeed."

That's because mitey isn't actually English. Just pretending to be so he can have a swipe 'from the inside'.

Think of a greyish hue. The writing style is the same.

Man you really have a problem Mystiroakey... Seriously.

eirebilly wrote:Man you really have a problem Mystiroakey... Seriously.

Whilst I'd say that's a little far, he's looking a bit obessive

ChequeredJersey wrote:

eirebilly wrote:Man you really have a problem Mystiroakey... Seriously.

Whilst I'd say that's a little far, he's looking a bit obessive

Got to love forums though for this sort of thing

When all is said and done what will be remembered and put in the history books is England won. It doesn't matter how or even that both sides were so bad neither deserved a win.

As a neutral I'm just disappointed with the game. I feel it an insult to my backside who was forced to sit through the most un entertaining game I've seen for a long long time.

Congrats England, tough luck Scotland. I think you'll both struggle for the remainder of the tournament

overlordofthewest wrote:When all is said and done what will be remembered and put in the history books is England won. It doesn't matter how or even that both sides were so bad neither deserved a win.

As a neutral I'm just disappointed with the game. I feel it an insult to my backside who was forced to sit through the most un entertaining game I've seen for a long long time.

Congrats England, tough luck Scotland. I think you'll both struggle for the remainder of the tournament

I have to ask, why on EARTH as a neutral would you (or anyone) watch the Calcutta. It is always unremittingly awful.

Surely, as a Non -neutral, England won the game by scoring more points than a dire Scotland, away from home, with a newly cobbled together team, and that is what England and her fans should take from this match.

How many teams start the 6 nations firing on all cylinders, because i haven't seen man,y and with this game out of the way and a game against Italy next week, well England should be able to get a smidgen of momentum. Here's hoping.

Hood83 wrote:

overlordofthewest wrote:When all is said and done what will be remembered and put in the history books is England won. It doesn't matter how or even that both sides were so bad neither deserved a win.

As a neutral I'm just disappointed with the game. I feel it an insult to my backside who was forced to sit through the most un entertaining game I've seen for a long long time.

Congrats England, tough luck Scotland. I think you'll both struggle for the remainder of the tournament

I have to ask, why on EARTH as a neutral would you (or anyone) watch the Calcutta. It is always unremittingly awful.

As a neutral I watched it. although I have to admit there was nothing else on tele.

Hood83 wrote:

overlordofthewest wrote:When all is said and done what will be remembered and put in the history books is England won. It doesn't matter how or even that both sides were so bad neither deserved a win.

As a neutral I'm just disappointed with the game. I feel it an insult to my backside who was forced to sit through the most un entertaining game I've seen for a long long time.

Congrats England, tough luck Scotland. I think you'll both struggle for the remainder of the tournament

I have to ask, why on EARTH as a neutral would you (or anyone) watch the Calcutta. It is always unremittingly awful.

I actually enjoy them, they are usually strong hard forwards battles. I dont think tha rugby has to be all flowing to be interesting. Thats just me though

biltongbek wrote:

PJHolybloke wrote:If I hear another "Scotland lost this game" comment I will be very, very disappointed.

Here's the scoring system for beginners, the game starts level at 0-0, the winner will be decided by one team scoring more points than the other. In the event that the score is level at full time it will be a draw.

Does anyone who wants to find out a result from someone else ever ask "who lost the game today/tonight"?

England did what they had to, Scotland did not.

Apart from that, England defended very well, and there's not much else to be said about the game, it wasn't very exciting but I can't remember the last game between these two sides that was.

Thanks for listening.

Thanks for the lesson PJ, I was wondering about that myself.

Biltong! How's things bud?

Glad to be of service to you mucker.

In fairness, i do believe that Scotland were the better team yesterday. Bucket loads of possesion but no finishing. That no finishing was more down their own inabilities rather than Englands defence.

Opportunity missed for Scotland i feel.

Both sides will have to improve a hell of a lot if they are going to challenge the likes of Wales, France and Ireland.

That said, England were not as strong on paper as Scotland and introduced quite a few young players and got the win. Massive credit to Hodgson for the charge down that led to the try and i thought that he played well in general. Not what i was expecting.

Surely the best team is the one who take the opportunities presented. That would be England.

We showed enough to know we'll be a threat to anyone and certainly a grand slam is still on the cards. Historically Scotland away and Ireland away have tripped us up. Now with Scotland defeated and Ireland away not being a fixture this year I'm confident that we might find a need for that promotional campaign iced last year.

A disappointing game for England by what should be our own standards, but on the whole enough positives for Scotland to think they will be competitive against the weaker sides in the 6N and ultimately improve their dire winning record under AR.

PJHolybloke wrote:

biltongbek wrote:

PJHolybloke wrote:If I hear another "Scotland lost this game" comment I will be very, very disappointed.

Here's the scoring system for beginners, the game starts level at 0-0, the winner will be decided by one team scoring more points than the other. In the event that the score is level at full time it will be a draw.

Does anyone who wants to find out a result from someone else ever ask "who lost the game today/tonight"?

England did what they had to, Scotland did not.

Apart from that, England defended very well, and there's not much else to be said about the game, it wasn't very exciting but I can't remember the last game between these two sides that was.

Thanks for listening.

Thanks for the lesson PJ, I was wondering about that myself.

Biltong! How's things bud?

Glad to be of service to you mucker.

Same old, same old. Still in therapy, but otherwise OK.

miteyironpaw wrote:Surely the best team is the one who take the opportunities presented. That would be England.

We showed enough to know we'll be a threat to anyone and certainly a grand slam is still on the cards. Historically Scotland away and Ireland away have tripped us up. Now with Scotland defeated and Ireland away not being a fixture this year I'm confident that we might find a need for that promotional campaign iced last year.

A disappointing game for England by what should be our own standards, but on the whole enough positives for Scotland to think they will be competitive against the weaker sides in the 6N and ultimately improve their dire winning record under AR.

Yes you would be right but what did England do?

They did nothing, absolutely nothing. They won by a charge down kick.

maestegmafia wrote:
Yes you would be right but what did England do?

They did nothing, absolutely nothing. They won by a charge down kick.

True, but it was the RIGHT kick they chose.

biltongbek wrote:

PJHolybloke wrote:

biltongbek wrote:

PJHolybloke wrote:If I hear another "Scotland lost this game" comment I will be very, very disappointed.

Here's the scoring system for beginners, the game starts level at 0-0, the winner will be decided by one team scoring more points than the other. In the event that the score is level at full time it will be a draw.

Does anyone who wants to find out a result from someone else ever ask "who lost the game today/tonight"?

England did what they had to, Scotland did not.

Apart from that, England defended very well, and there's not much else to be said about the game, it wasn't very exciting but I can't remember the last game between these two sides that was.

Thanks for listening.

Thanks for the lesson PJ, I was wondering about that myself.

Biltong! How's things bud?

Glad to be of service to you mucker.

Same old, same old. Still in therapy, but otherwise OK.

Still getting over it then? Pop in the pub sometime and I'll buy you a .

Did you ever get your shirt from the SG WC competition BTW?

Maesteg- 'They won by a charge down'


So, if by some miracle the Welsh win in Ireland by a chargedown, you won't want the points.

A few more sour grpaes, perhaps ?

PJHolybloke wrote:

biltongbek wrote:

PJHolybloke wrote:

biltongbek wrote:

PJHolybloke wrote:If I hear another "Scotland lost this game" comment I will be very, very disappointed.

Here's the scoring system for beginners, the game starts level at 0-0, the winner will be decided by one team scoring more points than the other. In the event that the score is level at full time it will be a draw.

Does anyone who wants to find out a result from someone else ever ask "who lost the game today/tonight"?

England did what they had to, Scotland did not.

Apart from that, England defended very well, and there's not much else to be said about the game, it wasn't very exciting but I can't remember the last game between these two sides that was.

Thanks for listening.

Thanks for the lesson PJ, I was wondering about that myself.

Biltong! How's things bud?

Glad to be of service to you mucker.

Same old, same old. Still in therapy, but otherwise OK.

Still getting over it then? Pop in the pub sometime and I'll buy you a .

Did you ever get your shirt from the SG WC competition BTW?

No mate, never heard or seen anything. Probably got lost in the postal system.

maestegmafia wrote:
Yes you would be right but what did England do?

They did nothing, absolutely nothing. They won by a charge down kick.

More legal than scoring a try from an illegal quick throw in.

english warrior;

The points aside, do you honestly feel that England were the better side? Scotland butchered several try scoring opportunities and i am struggeling to remember if England really had any at all?

They did win the breadown comfortably with several turnovers.

biltongbek wrote:

maestegmafia wrote:
Yes you would be right but what did England do?

They did nothing, absolutely nothing. They won by a charge down kick.

More legal than scoring a try from an illegal quick throw in.

You're in one of those moods i see

biltongbek wrote:

PJHolybloke wrote:

biltongbek wrote:

PJHolybloke wrote:

biltongbek wrote:

PJHolybloke wrote:If I hear another "Scotland lost this game" comment I will be very, very disappointed.

Here's the scoring system for beginners, the game starts level at 0-0, the winner will be decided by one team scoring more points than the other. In the event that the score is level at full time it will be a draw.

Does anyone who wants to find out a result from someone else ever ask "who lost the game today/tonight"?

England did what they had to, Scotland did not.

Apart from that, England defended very well, and there's not much else to be said about the game, it wasn't very exciting but I can't remember the last game between these two sides that was.

Thanks for listening.

Thanks for the lesson PJ, I was wondering about that myself.

Biltong! How's things bud?

Glad to be of service to you mucker.

Same old, same old. Still in therapy, but otherwise OK.

Still getting over it then? Pop in the pub sometime and I'll buy you a .

Did you ever get your shirt from the SG WC competition BTW?

No mate, never heard or seen anything. Probably got lost in the postal system.

Nobody got them then Biltong, I saw a post from the guy who finished thrid the other day asking Hobo about his. Bad form if you ask me.

eirebilly wrote:

biltongbek wrote:

maestegmafia wrote:
Yes you would be right but what did England do?

They did nothing, absolutely nothing. They won by a charge down kick.

More legal than scoring a try from an illegal quick throw in.

You're in one of those moods i see

what mood?

biltongbek wrote:

maestegmafia wrote:
Yes you would be right but what did England do?

They did nothing, absolutely nothing. They won by a charge down kick.

More legal than scoring a try from an illegal quick throw in.

Explains more about the quality of refereeing than anything else mate, but also very much besides the point.

I am amazed that the English fans and Coaches are so cheerful about yesterdays performance. If Lancaster is happy that that was good performance he is inept and England will get stuffed.

Englands saving grace yesterday was that Scotland dropped the ball.

Hoping the opposition drop the ball a lot is not the way to win International test matches. Lancaster and the team should livid and looking for masses of improvements for next week. Fans should be expecting a hell of a lot more from their team

maestegmafia wrote:

biltongbek wrote:

maestegmafia wrote:
Yes you would be right but what did England do?

They did nothing, absolutely nothing. They won by a charge down kick.

More legal than scoring a try from an illegal quick throw in.

Explains more about the quality of refereeing than anything else mate, but also very much besides the point.

I am amazed that the English fans and Coaches are so cheerful about yesterdays performance. If Lancaster is happy that that was good performance he is inept and England will get stuffed.

Englands saving grace yesterday was that Scotland dropped the ball.

Hoping the opposition drop the ball a lot is not the way to win International test matches. Lancaster and the team should livid and looking for masses of improvements for next week. Fans should be expecting a hell of a lot more from their team

Just teasing you mate. I agree Scotland was making all the play, I personally hoped England would show more commitment to playing, but it seems currently they are even worse than us.

biltongbek wrote:

maestegmafia wrote:

biltongbek wrote:

maestegmafia wrote:
Yes you would be right but what did England do?

They did nothing, absolutely nothing. They won by a charge down kick.

More legal than scoring a try from an illegal quick throw in.

Explains more about the quality of refereeing than anything else mate, but also very much besides the point.

I am amazed that the English fans and Coaches are so cheerful about yesterdays performance. If Lancaster is happy that that was good performance he is inept and England will get stuffed.

Englands saving grace yesterday was that Scotland dropped the ball.

Hoping the opposition drop the ball a lot is not the way to win International test matches. Lancaster and the team should livid and looking for masses of improvements for next week. Fans should be expecting a hell of a lot more from their team

Just teasing you mate. I agree Scotland was making all the play, I personally hoped England would show more commitment to playing, but it seems currently they are even worse than us.

Bil

yesterday confirmed Englands biggest problems lie in the fact that they do not have any decent players. Foden is about the only guy in that team worth his salt, the rest are very poor by the standards of previous England teams over the last decade, let alone the last twenty years.

Front five were lazy, backrow a shambles couldnt win the breakdown, half backs clueless and lacking skill, centers were ok in defence but wooden in attack. Wingers none existent, Ashton is starting to become a very lazy player, Strettle is not the player he was when he was younger, too many injuries.

maestegmafia wrote:

biltongbek wrote:

maestegmafia wrote:

biltongbek wrote:

maestegmafia wrote:
Yes you would be right but what did England do?

They did nothing, absolutely nothing. They won by a charge down kick.

More legal than scoring a try from an illegal quick throw in.

Explains more about the quality of refereeing than anything else mate, but also very much besides the point.

I am amazed that the English fans and Coaches are so cheerful about yesterdays performance. If Lancaster is happy that that was good performance he is inept and England will get stuffed.

Englands saving grace yesterday was that Scotland dropped the ball.

Hoping the opposition drop the ball a lot is not the way to win International test matches. Lancaster and the team should livid and looking for masses of improvements for next week. Fans should be expecting a hell of a lot more from their team

Just teasing you mate. I agree Scotland was making all the play, I personally hoped England would show more commitment to playing, but it seems currently they are even worse than us.

Bil

yesterday confirmed Englands biggest problems lie in the fact that they do not have any decent players. Foden is about the only guy in that team worth his salt, the rest are very poor by the standards of previous England teams over the last decade, let alone the last twenty years.

Front five were lazy, backrow a shambles couldnt win the breakdown, half backs clueless and lacking skill, centers were ok in defence but wooden in attack. Wingers none existent, Ashton is starting to become a very lazy player, Strettle is not the player he was when he was younger, too many injuries.

Yeah it seems their BLIP is going to last a little longer.

Although I must tell you that Supersport had Nick Mallet in studio for the Six Nation matches yesterday, and he confirmed that he was asked to put an application in for the england job.

If he does get the job, believe me things will change.

No decent players for England, front 5 lazy, half backs clueless and lacking skills !!


Yet England won away from home and you lot can't stand it, says more about you, than Englands performance.

Come on Ireland, do the business today!!

Steady on Maesteg, there were a lot of inexperienced players in that match 22, 7 players capped for the first time.

Murrayfield is never an easy place to go and win let alone win in style, as a Welshman you should know that as much as anyone.

Apart from the usual idiotic suspects, I doubt any England fan will be pleased with last night's performance, result yes, but performance no.

It's extremely harsh to be judging some of those players on a single performance especially when it's the first one of the tournament away at Murrayfield, I'm going to sit tight for a couple of games before making my mind up one way or the other, not forgetting that there are 4 or 5 first choice players missing for one reason or another....

overlordofthewest wrote:When all is said and done what will be remembered and put in the history books is England won. It doesn't matter how or even that both sides were so bad neither deserved a win.

As a neutral I'm just disappointed with the game. I feel it an insult to my backside who was forced to sit through the most un entertaining game I've seen for a long long time.

Congrats England, tough luck Scotland. I think you'll both struggle for the remainder of the tournament

A little bit over confidence creeping n from Wales now. I hope they expect to win and assume it'll be easy, this side bolstered by returning players might just give them a game