Western Samoa were rightly devastated having lost a game they should have won. England were woeful for most of this match but somehow found a way to win. That is the positive that everyone associated with England Rugby needs to hold onto as they stumble into the quarter-finals. The reality is that Steve Borthwick and his team were incredibly lucky to come away with an 18-17 win. Manu Samoa was magnificent, dominating England for large periods of the game. Once again, England’s basics were well below par together with a number of senior players underperforming. Charlie Inglefield sifts through a poor England performance with the spotlight on Owen Farrell’s position in the team.
England’s win over Samoa – Should not cover up serious problems
The Ford/Farrell partnership does not work
It has been said many times before that putting Ford and Farrell together in the starting line-up rarely works. Against Western Samoa, it categorically did not work. England were cut to shreds in the first half by the outstanding Lima Sopoaga who utilised the acres of space that England gifted him. In truth, Seilala Mapusua’s men should have been out of sight by halftime. Farrell is a world-class fly-half and a club-competent inside centre. No more than that – again this was proven at international level.
Farrell was regularly beaten for pace on his outside especially when trying to lead England’s drift defence. Jonny May had a nightmare dealing with the muscular Nigel Ah-Wong opposite him. May was caught out of position for one of the Samoan tries not helped by having his centres not there to help him out. As predicted pre-game, Ford had little or no impact on the game with Farrell outside him. Ford could consider himself unlucky to be hooked early in the second half when it really should have been Farrell instead.
This is where Borthwick must earn his coin over the next week. Against Fiji (unless Portugal causes an almighty upset on Sunday) he cannot hope to see this partnership continue. England desperately needs two genuine centres. On Saturday afternoon’s showing it should be Manu Tuilagi and Joe Marchant. Fiji will cause England all kinds of problems with their offloading as we saw at Twickenham back in August. Farrell’s position in this team must be in grave danger particularly given Ford’s form in the first couple of rounds. Farrell looked slow and indecisive not helped by being timed out when taking a penalty kick in the second half.
England’s bench made a difference
There weren’t many bright spots for England, apart from the bench. Danny Care was superb in the last twenty minutes. Scoring England’s decisive second try and stopping what should have been a match winning Samoan try in the dying minutes. George Martin had a thunderous impact, making inroads with his carries and together with Care stifling Western Samoa at the death. And then there was Marcus Smith.
It will be a hot topic of discussion in the press in the lead up to England’s quarter final next Saturday. Borthwick clearly does not trust Smith to start. He will be desperate to integrate both Ford and Farrell but that has surely become untenable. Smith should be considered at full-back or at fly-half. England’s win over Samoa must not cover up serious problems in the selection process. Smith’s name will once again being thrown up to start next week. The Harlequins’ pivot is wasted on the bench. Against Western Samoa he again made an impact, drawing defenders, and putting Maro Itoje through that should have led to a try to Joe Marchant (rightfully it was called forward).
England’s win over Samoa must not cover up serious problems
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You could feel the frustration that was steaming out of Lawrence Dallaglio’s ears in commentary. He reiterated over and again the importance of getting your basics right. England’s basics were ragged throughout the match. Jamie George had a night to forget throwing into the lineout. There were countless knock-on’s, turnovers and dropped ball. The scrum by both teams was a mess and understandably the Samoan management were blowing up about how the set-piece was refereed. If England are any chance of progressing deep into the finals, they have got to get their basics right.
Too many of England’s team were way off their best. There were doubts around Jonny May’s selection in keeping out the exciting Henry Arundell. After a decent gallop up the middle early in the first half, May came off second best against the lethal Ah-Wong. Arundell must be in the match-day 23 for the quarterfinals just for his x-factor alone.
Alex Mitchell had an uncomfortable day out in the number nine jersey and with Care making a difference when he came on, it should be the Harlequin who starts the quarter final clash. England could do with his experience as Fiji will take full advantage of any similar lethargy that England put out in Lille on Saturday.
England can still go far in this tournament
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Borthwick was right to credit Samoa after the match. Steven Luatua and his men were magnificent to a man. This was not all about how poor England were so much as how good Western Samoa were. Lima Sopagoa, Theo McFarland and Jonathan Taumateine were absolute titans throughout. Despite all of the mistakes, a degree of refereeing luck and an England bench who made an impact, England found a way to win. It wasn’t pretty, but in successful World Cup campaigns it so rarely is – particularly in the knock-out stages.
That said, England’s win over Samoa must not cover up serious problems in their game management and reliance on players who are not performing. Borthwick has to make a call on whether Ford or Farrell starts at number 10. Their partnership as a duo cannot continue. Arundell should be somewhere in the match-day squad and Smith must be considered in the number 15 jumper. England were so ponderous and slow on Saturday, an alarming trait that we have seen all too much in the last 12 months. Post-match Borthwick mentioned taking ‘huge learnings’ from their performance, he now needs to put that into action. If not, England will be heading home next weekend.
Photo Credit: Dan Mullan/Getty Images from England Rugby’s Facebook Page, on October 7, 2023.
