Six Nations: Scotland 31 England 20
Certain wins feel bigger than others and for Scotland this result will reverberate for ages. Reclaiming the Calcutta Cup is always sweet but convincingly ending England’s 12-Test unbeaten record was a glorious bonus. For Gregor Townsend and his side, under pressure after their opening-round defeat in Rome, this was some riposte to their critics.
Ultimately, it was not even particularly close. Two tries by Huw Jones, a hard-nosed collective effort from the Scottish pack and a typically artful display from Finn Russell were simply too much for an England side who had dared to believe this week that their previous tartan traumas were behind them. Instead, they were outplayed and tactically out-thought by Townsend and his coaching staff and have now won just two of the last nine meetings between the nations.
Scotland were rampant at times in the first half, with sharp tries by Jones, Jamie Ritchie and Ben White giving them a 24-10 interval cushion. From England’s perspective, there was little improvement thereafter with Jones’s second try, originating from a charged-down George Ford drop-goal attempt, effectively sealing the visitors’ fate.
Well as Scotland played they were assisted by a strangely below-par English effort. Whenever they did locate any rhythm a little error would generally halt any momentum and their defensive system, with Tommy Freeman not looking entirely at ease in the midfield, was less than watertight. Steve Borthwick’s side, possibly lulled into a false sense of security by their straightforward win over Wales in round one, were off the pace and lacking in both control and authority.
Scotland’s Finn Russell scores a conversion. Photograph: Jane Barlow/PA
They also had Henry Arundell red-carded in the 37th minute when the wing received his second yellow card of the game for taking out Kyle Steyn in the air. These days that means England were only reduced to 14 men for the ensuing 20 minutes but the disruption to England’s plans and the encouragement it gave Scotland were both significant.
Such twists and turns are all part of the intricate Six Nations tapestry. And days encapsulate the championship’s enduring appeal. The city of Edinburgh looked achingly beautiful beneath clear blue skies and, as ever, there was a tantalising sense of local expectancy on the streets and the stadium-bound trams. To dust down a classic old Scottish newspaper intro: Can they do it? Aye, I think they can.
It was also a perfect evening for rugby: cold, still and atmospheric. The acoustic version of Flower of Scotland never sounds better than when England are in town while the hosts’ opening weekend defeat in Rome added a now-or-never element. For Scotland team this fixture was a clear fork in the road in terms of their championship prospects.
Townsend had demanded a good start “to show who we are” and the opening 14 minutes suggested his players are still very much listening to him. Even before Arundell received a slightly harsh first yellow for desperately trying to slow down a home attack, Scotland were already ahead through a Russell penalty and looking sharp. A 14-man England were struggling to get a grip and a lovely midfield tip-on by Russell then gave Jones the chance to run around Maro Itoje, temporarily out of his natural habitat on the right wing.
Worse was to follow for the visitors as Scotland poured forward again, committing white-shirted defenders and leaving England’s flanks exposed. This time it was Tuipulotu’s long pass to the unmarked Ritchie that did the damage, with Russell’s second successful conversion further widening the gap.
Scotland’s Huw Jones (right) runs through to score a try. Photograph: Steve Welsh/PA
England needed to respond urgently and did so when Arundell, back on the field, appeared on George Ford’s shoulder to score his fourth try of this championship. So much for a cautious, cagey opening half hour. A Ford penalty made it 17-10 after just 25 minutes with no sign of the contest slowing down.
Russell was certainly enjoying himself and Scotland’s ringmaster was soon orchestrating more mischief. Having already danced around and through a thicket of defenders, the outhalf put in a rolling chip that held up nicely just short of the England line. Ellis Genge went to gather it but the ball squirted loose and Ben White seized gleefully on the unexpected gift.
Almost nothing that England had talked about – silencing the crowd, suffocating Russell, asserting forward dominance – was happening. Suddenly they looked uncertain and their narrow defence was again shown up when Scotland chose to run from their own line, making good progress up the right-hand side rather than hoofing the ball straight back into English hands.
And with Arundell having now disappeared for the second time, England had all kinds of other problems to solve. Ten Scottish linebreaks to three reflected the tenor of the contest’s first 40 minutes as accurately as any other stat and the question was whether Borthwick’s team could belatedly remember their lines and restore a bit of order.
The arrival of Tom Curry in place of Sam Underhill at half-time was the clearest possible sign that they also needed to up their physicality and ask more questions of the Scottish pack. An early scrum penalty did trim the score to 24-13 but another English calamity was just around the corner. Ford’s drop-goal attempt was charged down by the energetic Matt Fagerson and Jones was on his shoulder to sprint 60 metres for the bonus point score.
The rest was simply a matter of Scotland ensuring there would be no repeat of past collapses from winning positions, despite a late consolation try for Ben Earl. This result has also dramatically resuscitated their title hopes, with embattled Wales in Cardiff next up. Although, on the evidence of this spectacular turnaround, it would be wisest to assume nothing. – Guardian
Scoring sequence: 4 mins Russell pen 3-0; 10 mins Jones try 8-0; 11 mins Russell con 10-0; 14 mins Ritchie try 15-0; 15 mins Russell con 17-0; 21 mins Arundell try 17-5; 23 mins Ford con 17-7; 26 mins Ford pen 17-10; 27 mins White try 22-10; 28 mins Russell con 24-10; Half-time 24-10; 45 mins Ford pen 24-13; 53 mins Jones try 29-13; 54 mins Russell con 31-13; 78 mins Earl try 31-19; 78 mins Early con 31-20
Scotland: Jordan, Steyn, Jones, Tuipulotu (capt), Dobie, Russell, White; McBeth, Turner, Z Fagerson, Brown, Cummings, Ritchie, Darge, Dempsey. Replacements: Fagerson for Ritchie (41 mins), Schoeman for McBeth (49), Cherry for Turner, Millar Mills for Fagerson (51), Williamson for Dempsey (57), Horne for White (58), Graham for Jordan (69), Hastings for Dobie (75).
England: Steward; Roebuck, Freeman, Dingwall, Arundell; Ford, Mitchell; Genge, Cowan-Dickie, Heyes, Chessum, Itoje, Pepper, Underhill, Earl. Replacements: Curry for Underhill (41), Pollock for Pepper, George for Cowan-Dickie, Rodd for Genge, Smith for Arundell (all 57), Davison for Heyes (68), Spencer for Mitchell (69).
Sinbin: Arundell 8 mins.
Red card: Arundell 37 mins.
Referee: Nika Amashukeli (Georgia).