June International Test: Australia vs. England [1st Test] (11/06/2016)

[AzaMatt]

North unlikely to play again in the series after possible hamstring tear. Question is, who do we call up to replace him. Already have walker and Tom James but we need another. If hanno Dirksen wasn't injured this might have been his time to get a cap. Possibly Steph Evans?

 

[Duck a l'Orange]

Thought Robshaw was excellent. Everyone had a good game and Haskell rightfully man of the match, but Robshaw had superb hands and can claim a large chunk of the credit for Yarde's try as the only person to chase the penalty kick with any commitment.

Anyone else chuckle at Ford doing a Faz special looping pass for Yarde's try?

I'm buzzing with that result, brilliant game, the Aussies were hugely impressive at times.

Ford-Farrell-Joseph good enough for the Six Nations and good enough for the Southern Hemisphere then?

 

[Bada-Bing!]

North unlikely to play again in the series after possible hamstring tear. Question is, who do we call up to replace him. Already have walker and Tom James but we need another. If hanno Dirksen wasn't injured this might have been his time to get a cap. Possibly Steph Evans?

Wrong thread.

 

[Peat]

North unlikely to play again in the series after possible hamstring tear. Question is, who do we call up to replace him. Already have walker and Tom James but we need another. If hanno Dirksen wasn't injured this might have been his time to get a cap. Possibly Steph Evans?

Wrong thread @AzaMatt! Although gutting news, he looked great. Still - go post this in the right one.

 

[AzaMatt]

Wrong thread @AzaMatt! Although gutting news, he looked great. Still - go post this in the right one.

Argh sorry!

 

[Zed]

Great game! England were the deserving winners although I thought their defence overall was pretty poor, especially in the backs. Can't really fault our performance, I thought we played well, but were beaten by a better team at the end of the day.

 

[LeinsterMan (NotTigsMan)]

Anyone else see a spooky ghost whilst watching Itoje and Haskell play.

God damn ectoplasm everywhere got me like.....

 

[Ka_Mate]

Relax and turn it into some consistency, the ecstasy seen here is an insight into something larger at play in the psyche and expectations of the team and later comes the complacency.

One thing for sure is that Eddie Jones is a brilliant coach and can get the best out of teams.

 

[LeinsterMan (NotTigsMan)]

Relax and turn it into some consistency, the ecstasy seen here is an insight into something larger at play in the psyche and expectations of the team and later comes the complacency.

One thing for sure is that Eddie Jones is a brilliant coach and can get the best out of teams.

It's all a bit of Banter.

I think everyone has realistic expectations when it comes to English rugby.

We are currently the best team in the world.

 

[Bada-Bing!]

Relax and turn it into some consistency, the ecstasy seen here is an insight into something larger at play in the psyche and expectations of the team and later comes the complacency.

One thing for sure is that Eddie Jones is a brilliant coach and can get the best out of teams.

It's called post match euphoria mate. At least for one day England fans are allowed to luxuriate in the win, but then come back down to earth tomorrow. All this does is earn England the right to be in the series to win it, whether that be next week or Sydney. This is not over by a long shot and most England fans on here will know that.

 

[johnmac99]

Fantastic game and England played really well, esp. when Eddie realised that Burrell at 12 wasn't working, and took him off. His defence has never been good enough, IMO.

We wanted to beat Australia and to come back from 10 pts down to win by 11 was really emphatic.
Eddie has to play Ford/Farrell next game from the start. Bit concerned about Watson who looked off it, and let Hooper run away from him for his second try.

Haskell given MOM from both Sky and Fox, and Itoje was immense.

 

[Ragey Erasmus]

Fantastic game and England played really well, esp. when Eddie realised that Burrell at 12 wasn't working, and took him off. His defence has never been good enough, IMO.

We wanted to beat Australia and to come back from 10 pts down to win by 11 was really emphatic.
Eddie has to play Ford/Farrell next game from the start. Bit concerned about Watson who looked off it, and let Hooper run away from him for his second try.

Haskell given MOM from both Sky and Fox, and Itoje was immense.

I don't think it was Watson on the wing at that point, it was Vunipola. I may be wrong but in the replay it was definitely vunipola chasing him from behind.

 

[Saint Matt]

Good performance. Think we were all slightly concerned after the opening exchanges but the most pleasing thing about the win, for me at least, was the response. The talk all week was about being aggressive in defence and shutting the Australian structures down at source and being physical dominant. Obviously Australia came out firing and moved the ball really well and did the basics well from the off. We were so narrow in defence but Jones' decision to bring Ford on for Burrell was an outstanding piece of coaching. Sometimes big calls need to be made and he got it spot on and that set the platform for the win. Huge move.

You've got to credit the character of the team though, to start so poorly in Australia and to come back isn't simple. Sucess breeds success doesn't it and after the Grand Slam, this England team are starting to find ways to win and are building some real experiences for themselves. I thought the back row were fantastic; Haskell smashed everything that moved and came up with some real crucial plays, Robshaw standing up at 6 and doing the fundamentals really well all game and setting a platform. Itoje is just growing in confidence game on game and is starting to look like a real leader for us in the middle of that pack. Thought it was a real guty performance from those guys.

You've got to look at the back line as well though but it's going to be interesting next week. He has to go with Ford at 10 and Farrell at 12 but there is going to be a lot of pressure on those two guys next week and Australia will be targeting that after today's performance. Makes such a difference as a 10 though when you've got a 12 a bit wider who can spot opportunities and can take some pressure of you. Keeps the defence honest as well as you can have runners coming off both 10 and 12 and the result of that is more space on the flanks. Again though, Ford's confidence won't have been great after the Wales match but his pass to put his winger was real class on the back of good work from the pack and his kick to the corner for Nowell's try was a really smart piece of play as well. Farrell's kicking under pressure was obviously huge as well.

It is a three test series though but very much a job well done. I think next week will be just as though, if not a tougher challenge than today's game but if you can show that character every week at the very least you'll give yourselves a chance.

Obviously I've focused on England here but I thought Australia played very well and showed some really good signs. Enjoyed the game so well done to both sides. Looking forward to next week for sure.

 

[Gavin]

Did not watch the match, bit what was the issue with Burrell? How did the backline change when he was taken off?

 

[Ragey Erasmus]

Did not watch the match, bit what was the issue with Burrell? How did the backline change when he was taken off?

He was ****e in defence

 

[johnmac99]

Burrell didn't seem to know how to operate in the defensive line and was on his heels too much.

It looked like a lack of awareness and experience, which ended up with us playing too narrow defensively, and they took advantage of that and scored two tries.

Eddie brought Ford on for Burrell, who went to fly-half and Farrell moved to I/C and that stabilised the defensive line.

It stopped Foleau coming into the line as much as Foley was trying to probe for gaps. Consequently we had more breakdowns and Hackshaw and Itoje grew into the game and forced penalties from their forwards.

 

[spartan32]

Well that was pretty special by England. Coming back after that first 20 mins to win against such a strong side was very impressive. EJ has incredible tactical vision and it was amazing to see the difference when Burrell was brought off. England dominated the set piece, and put in some massive hits. The Aussies looked shell shocked at times. Great to see Ford back to some form and Haskell and Robshaw playing at the very top of their game. Aussies are clearly a dangerous team and Falou is a real threat, but England handled them really well and although they will come back harder next week, I have no doubt that we too will raise our game.

This series has the makings of something legendary, and I can't wait for next Saturday.

 

[Patchey]

Cracking test match.

My one question from it, is that Burrell's last test?

 

[j'nuh]

Cracking test match.

My one question from it, is that Burrell's last test?

Maybe.

It depends on what Jones' thinking was when he brought Burrell off. Was it that Burrell wasn't good enough, or that a game plan involving a ball-crashing 12 didn't work? Either way, not very good for Burrell.

I'm just wondering what it means for Tuilagi/Te'o. It's been said before that Jones didn't know whether he wanted a "second 10" at 12, or a ball-crasher. This game might push him more towards the "second 10" route.

 

[ncurd]

Cracking test match.

My one question from it, is that Burrell's last test?

Quite possibly people forget he was found usually wanting last year just that Lancaster went for even poorer options in Barritt & Burgess when dropping him.

I think Ford/Farrell should be combo we'll use for some time unless a real 12 option turns up. It works it's won us Grand Slam now a game Down Under and may go onto getting us a series win. No point changing it which is why I was calling for it before the team was announced and why I thought EJ would go with it.