Following England’s 42-21 defeat to Ireland in round three of the Six Nations, here is how we scored Steve Borthwick’s side.
England player ratings v Ireland
15 Freddie Steward: Some good flashes early on, but his yellow card ultimately proved costly as Ireland ran in 14 points in his time off the field and gained serious momentum in the process. Was also a victim of Borthwick’s hook, coming off just before the end of first-half. 3
14 Tommy Freeman: Made a decent impact when given the ball, but was not given as much time on it as he would have liked out wide. 5
13 Ollie Lawrence: Some early mishaps, but improved as the game went on and grabbed a try in the process. Not quite the explosion he would have hoped for after missing the opening two Tests. 5
12 Fraser Dingwall: Again played a nice distribution role, but was caught out in defence and his opposite man reaped the rewards. 4
11 Henry Arundell: Some very nice flashes ball-in-hand, but couldn’t quite get the breakaway his efforts warranted. 5
10 George Ford: Blew very hot and very cold, with no real in between. Missed kicks to touch stagnated England’s attack early on, but when he clicked into gear, they did play some nice shape. Will be annoyed at this one, no doubt. 3
9 Alex Mitchell: Did ok with what he was given, but came off after 25 minutes with an injury. 5
Incredible Ireland shock Twickenham in Six Nations stunner as England embarrassed
Back-row
8 Henry Pollock: Very lively in his first start, but was another to feel the wrath of the referee with a sin-binning and will be frustrated by that. 5
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7 Ben Earl: Ends the game in good credit despite his team’s collective struggles. Carried very well in the tight, once again leading the carrying stats for his side with 20 to his name, and also got stuck into the breakdown efforts. 6
6 Tom Curry: Got through some decent work in the tight, but couldn’t quite get the better of his opposite back-rowers. 5
Outrage as Tadhg Furlong escapes punishment for Tom Curry ‘decapitation’ attempt
Tight five
5 Ollie Chessum: A solid enough display from the lock, as he again looked to get involved in the attack, but a few defensive errors blotted the copybook. 5
4 Maro Itoje (c): Worked hard around the park in a tireless effort, ending the game joint-top of the England tackle stats for his troubles. 5
3 Joe Heyes: The scrum was about the only good thing about England’s performance today, and he was a key part of that. Got through some work in the loose too, as we’ve come to expect. 6
2 Luke Cowan-Dickie: Not his finest day in an England shirt. Did well in the loose, but the lineout was a real issue for England in the early part of the game, firing at 67% during his time on the field, and was later hooked at 29 minutes. 3
1 Ellis Genge: Copy and paste his prop colleagues section, really. Scrummaged very well and trucked hard around the park. 6
Replacements: Added some polish onto what was a pretty dismal day for the hosts. Marcus Smith injected a different dynamic into his side’s attack, and crucially gave them a different threat, while the likes of Bevan Rodd, Jamie George and Guy Pepper also end the game with credit. Borthwick will yet again be left with questions over his starting XV, if his bench’s impact is anything to go by. 6