It was the one that got away for England and the ultimate smash-and-grab for Wales, we always knew that it was going to be intense, physical and enthralling however few could have penned the script that unfolded at Twickenham Stadium last night.
This morning the England squad will wake up and it will hurt, a lot. Last night in the immediate moments after the game during their obligatory press conference both Chris Robshaw and Stuart Lancaster looked like broken men, the hurt and anguish on their faces was tough to witness. The defeat and the manner in which it arose will take some comprehending, it is one I'll need to match a number of times more, however my immediate thoughts are here. The brutality of a competition like this is that England have little time to grieve instead they have to lick their wounds and focus on what is ahead;
“It is now about the reaction, it is about the character this squad and it hurts like hell at the moment. Myself and the other guys we feel we’ve let a lot of people down who have come today to support us in the way that we didn’t quite close out the game when we were in a very prominent position. Credit to Wales but it is now about what happens next, a huge week ahead and we know that we have a huge challenge with Australia coming to town and all our focus is on that.”
Much of the past week was spent discussing England’s ‘big’ selection decisions and the pressure was on for them to bear fruit on the greatest of stages. In my opinion these calls did deliver and weren’t the reason that England lost the test match. For much of the game Jamie Roberts was kept quiet, for much of the match England were defensively on point and at ten Owen Farrell delivered the type of performance required from him; determined, ballsy and secure. However the fact is that, not for the first time, England's discipline let them down and ultimately cost them the match.
Had the result ended up differently, had England won by a point and not lost by three then we could be lauding and praising many facets of their performance, the scrummage in particular. England’s pack took Wales to task multiple times with Dan Cole, Tom Youngs and Joe Marler causing the types of problems that we haven't seen them inflict in weeks, it was a welcome sight. For much of the match England won the collisions and were brutally physical, prior to leaving the field due to injury Billy Vunipola was a man possessed. The number eight's work rate matched Chris Robshaw’s, he everywhere and excelled and Ben Youngs put the Fijian nightmare behind him sparking England from nine.
The flip side to these positives is the fact that England were never able to get away from Wales, in spite of the scoreboard reading 22-12. At that stage the numerical distance belied the feeling of the match, it wasn't quite comfortable enough and the potent combination of the whistle of Jerome Garces and the boot of Dan Biggar stole the show. Now, much will now be discussed about the last call and the decision to go for the victory as opposed to the draw, individuals all over the country will give their views, former captains, players and fans. However the fact is that England should never have got to that point in the first place given their earlier dominance and hold on the game. Was it the right decision? Will that lost pool point cost England? You suspect that it might… however in the heat of the match, the call was made and it cannot be changed.
No-one needs to remind England’s players or coaches of the magnitude of this loss, depending on what is to come, it may be the most hurtful and costly one of their careers. It was a match that England shouldn't have lost, it was a match that takes some computing and one that will need to be viewed many more times before I can fully processes it. Let me be clear, you cannot take anything away from Wales, they were battered by injuries and pushed to their limits and yet they delivered - it was bravery of the highest order and credit to them.
Knockout rugby is now on the way for England, much earlier than they would have liked, and everything rests on eighty minutes against a side that most believe to be one of the dark horses to go all the way in this competition.
