England vs Australia: Second-half rally sees hosts to victory at Twickenham
Re-live all the action
Your support helps us to tell the story
My recent work focusing on Latino voters in Arizona has shown me how crucial independent journalism is in giving voice to underrepresented communities.
Your support is what allows us to tell these stories, bringing attention to the issues that are often overlooked. Without your contributions, these voices might not be heard.
Every dollar you give helps us continue to shine a light on these critical issues in the run up to the election and beyond
Eric Garcia
Washington Bureau Chief
England swept aside Australia 37-18 to claim a sixth successive victory over the Wallabies and complete a successful autumn series at Twickenham marred only by a controversial defeat to New Zealand.
The old enemies were deadlocked at 13-13 entering half-time but blistering tries from Elliot Daly and Joe Cokanasiga opened up daylight before the win became a rout when Owen Farrell touched down in the closing stages.
Apart from losing their way in the second quarter, England dominated the Cook Cup showdown with man of the match Kyle Sinckler, Jonny May and Cokanasiga outstanding.
Victory was secured against one of the poorest Wallaby teams seen at Twickenham in recent years, the tourists enfeebled by the loss of David Pocock to a neck injury and tumultuous build up due to senior players Kurtley Beale and Adam Ashley-Cooper being disciplined for bringing women back to their hotel rooms.
Among the biggest roars of the afternoon was reserved for Manu Tuilagi, who finally made his first Test appearance for two years as a final-quarter replacement having overcome a groin strain.
Re-live the action below:
25 min: Sinckler is tearing it up in the scrum and forces yet another penalty. It's inside England's own half but the side point to the posts. Daly steps up but it proves too much, even for him. The ball falls short before Australia kick clear.
Oh wait, maybe not... we've gone to TMO after the ref saw the replays on the main screen here at Twickenham. You couldn't write it...
29 min: And he's disallowed it! In the build-up to the try, the pass made to Samu Kerevi - before he eventually gave it to Haylett-Petty on his inside - was judged to be forward. Play is brought back for an England scrum as chants of 'Swing Low' go up across Twickenham.
32 min: Farrell sends a sublime, high-hanging kick deep into Australia's defence, allowing the hosts to smother Folau. The visitors manage to get themselves out of a tight situation but it's not long before they concede a penalty. It was Rodda who was pulled up for not releasing at the ruck after appearing to dump tackle Daly. Farrell to kick.
34 min: Farrell makes the kick. England 13-3 Australia.
England 13-10 Australia (Folau try, To'omua conversion, 37 min)
You can't argue about the quality of that try. From a line-out, Australia cleanly and quickly shipped the ball to the other side of the pitch in what must have been under 10 seconds. It was a crisp, clean passage of the play that had England scrambling to organise themselves.
From there, positioned on England's 22, the visitors sent the ball back inwards before Folau came charging from deep to pierce the hosts' defence. Farrell was guilty in missing his tackle while Youngs was sent the wrong way by a smart shake of the shoulders from Folau. The wing did the rest, diving under the posts to round off a fantastic movement from Australia.
40 min: Australia scum inside England's half. This could prove to be dangerous...
40 min: England were warned. Australia must have made 30 metres following that scrum, storming forward to the hosts' try line. An important tackle/block/shoulder charge (call it what you want, that was very suspect) from Farrell stopped Rodda 5 metres out from what would have been a definite try. From there, Australia shipped it right but play broke down following a sloppy offload. The ref subsequently blew up for a penalty for offside, which Australia kicked to draw the score level at 13-13.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments