Dubai: England won a hard fought battle against France at Twickenham to maintain their 100 per cent record in the RBS 6 Nations on Saturday.
The victory adds fuel to their potential Grand Slam fire, ten years since they last achieved the feat.
A second-half try from Manu Tuilagi along with Owen Farrell’s unerring accuracy from the kicking tee helped England overcome a dogged French side, who lead 9-10 at half-time.
The eight changes wrung by France head coach Philippe Saint-André XV galvanised his side with an attacking spark mysteriously in absentia from their previous 6 Nations outing against Italy and Wales.
Half-backs Morgan Parra and François Trinh-Duc spearheaded a revived French attack and created opportunities for le Bleu to test the English defence.
Often accused of a frustrating unpredictability, a gritty, determined French team turned up at Twickenham. And they muscled their way into the early exchanges with Louis Picamole and captain Thierry Dusautoir leading from the back row.
An early penalty goal apiece for Farrell and Parra saw the score move quickly to 3-3 within the opening four minutes.
An intense first 40-minutes at Twickenham was characterised by frenetic episodes of high-impact attack and defence. Manu Tuilagi, back in England colours after an ankle injury kept him out of the starting line-up, had an immediate gain-line impact.
Only a superb last ditch tackle from Parra on 27 minutes prevented the Samoan-born centre from running in a try for the hosts after a typical midfield break. Farrell slotted the consequent penalty goal to make it 6-3.
But, as winger Mike Brown had warned in the build-up to Le Crunch: beware a wounded, underestimated French team.
Out of nowhere a blistering break and superb solo effort from Wesley Fofana announced the arrival of the French into Le Crunch with emphasis 28 minutes into the tryst.
The French inside centre burst through flimsy tackles from Tom Wood, Chris Ashton and Ben Youngs to sprint from his own 22 into the English try zone for a 7 pointer of the highest individual quality.
England kept battering away at the French and were rewarded with another penalty three minutes after conceding what England head coach Stuart Lancaster called a “soft” try.
The unflappable Farrell duly obliged and added another 3 points to the score to make it 9-10 at the break.
The second-half started much as the first did with lots of energy, French pressure, English mistakes at the set-piece and a mounting penalty count. But Lancaster’s men inched their way into the game with positive intent when on the front and back foot.
After a slipshod defensive performance in the first-half, England’s line speed improved and their tackling became more ferocious with each hit, with talisman Robshaw leading the tackle and carry count. And as England’s defence stamped its authority, France’s Achilles heel was the speed of the ball from the ruck: Death by slow ball.
A penalty for the hosts on 47 minutes presented England’s metronomic fly half with a chance to restore the lead, which he did to take it to 12-10.
With 55 minutes on the clock, England crossed the line through the ever-impressive Tuilagi. The bulldozing centre capitalised on an up-and-under hoisted high into the French half, which le bleu failed to react to and deal with.
From the ensuing, scrappy ruck, Tom Wood kicked the ball out to a waiting Tuilagi who ate up 30 meters to score England’s five pointer and put his team firmly on the front foot. Replays showed the English centre may have been offside for the try – being in front of the kicker. No protests were raised.
France refused to go away, hitting back immediately with the boot of substitute Freddie Michalak to take the hosts within striking distance at 17-13.
But England’s recent good form has been built on stoic professionalism and game management. And their battering rams continued to knock at the French wall, forcing the game to be played in the opponents half and ultimately sapping the visitor’s energies.
In the final quarter of the game, England’s relentless onslaught proved decisive. Two elementary penalty goals from substitute fly-half Toby Flood took the hosts into a comfortable 23-13 position with less than five minutes on the clock.
Captain Robshaw’s workman-like effort symbolised the effort England put into the rival clash in London and when it came to rolling up their sleeves to get dirty, England did it better on the day.
