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'Clueless' - Lawrence Dallaglio leads condemnation as Sunday papers tear into England
Former England captain Lawrence Dallaglio led the condemnation of a “clueless” 11-6 defeat by Scotland as Eddie Jones’ champions launched their title defence in dire fashion.
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The magnificent Scots orchestrated their first victory at Twickenham since 1983 to reclaim the Calcutta Cup through a dominant performance that was blunted only by their failure to score more points.
Dallaglio, who won 85 caps from 1995 to 2007, was scathing in his assessment as the Calcutta Cup was taken back to Edinburgh on the 150th anniversary of international rugby’s oldest fixture.
“England looked clueless. Not just for parts of it, all game,” Dallaglio said in his column for the Sunday Times.
“Whatever the cause, it’s got to be sorted out quickly because that was as bad as it gets. This is not me being overcritical. It was there for everyone to see.
“I’ve got nothing but respect for these England players but you’ve got to keep earning respect and they didn’t do that in this game.
“The players need to take a very long, hard look at themselves and come up with some answers. I thought England didn’t fire a shot.
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https://twitter.com/RugbyPass/status/1358350693216698368
“I felt there was a mindset problem. England hadn’t anything like the same energy and hunger that Scotland had.
“Of course the team were without a number of key performers but that’s no excuse for an abject performance.”
England’s most capped full-back Mike Brown was damning of the attacking failings – a recurring fault of Jones’ team since the autumn.
Brown, a favourite of the Australian head coach until the end of his Test career in 2018, called for captain Owen Farrell to be dropped at fly-half in an attempt to ignite the 2019 World Cup runners-up.
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“Eddie Jones talks about giving the English rugby public something to smile about in the current climate but people can’t be enjoying this England,” Brown said in the Mail on Sunday.
"You never atone for a game like this, this stays with you for a long time"
– England boss Eddie Jones was in waspish form with the media at his post-match presser… but he still managed to congratulate Scotland#ENGvSCO #SixNations
https://t.co/k1nIDbRZTO— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) February 6, 2021
“Next weekend could be time for a change and I would put Owen Farrell on the bench and start with George Ford against Italy on Saturday.
“Compared to his usual high standards Farrell was poor at Twickenham, with England wasting four-man overlaps and kicking the ball away.
“Enough is enough now and I would give Ford a chance to show how he can lead the backs.
“I would rather see England get some of their dangerous players into the match and give them a chance to express themselves – I don’t enjoy watching kick-chase all the time and I am sure people at home don’t either.”
Sir Clive Woodward, the mastermind of England’s 2003 World Cup triumph, also pulled no punches.
“The score flattered England, it was nowhere near that close. Make no mistake, this was a huge setback for Eddie Jones and the squad,” Woodward said in the Mail on Sunday.
“The team selected was fine – I really liked the look of the team actually – but their game plan and execution was very poor.
“Owen Farrell was in a state of shock during the post-match interviews. If we are brutally honest England scarcely fired a shot.”
Comments on RugbyPass
Starts to be overdone and oversold this systematic SA narrative…which nevertheless has the merit in this case to recognise blatant refereeing mistakes in their favor
2 Go to commentsNice article. Shades of Steinbeck. They can win the final if they take the game seriously; but only if they take it seriously.
2 Go to commentsWhat a sad way to end a glittering career. Somebody should tell him to delete his social media accounts and face the consequences of what he's done. Then he should slip away quietly into obscurity. This isn't likely to happen, something tells me he'll be back in The Sun / Daily Mail sooner rather than later.
3 Go to commentsguys its fine! he understands why he did what he did and has taken accountability for it; why should he have to be accountable to a court? after all he did was abuse people in person - its not as if he was engaging in _online_ abuse!
3 Go to commentsChiefs flanker Kaylum Boshier yellow-carded for collapsing the scrum as it rolled towards the line. It was a maul….
1 Go to commentsyou know, i’m a leinster fan so I want Northampton to lose and it is gonna be tuff with Cortney lawes, Alex michell and the other guys🏉 lets go leinster🏉
1 Go to commentsWelcome to the Pro ranks. Those hard teams of old do hit the sole better though. its a dog fight at the top.
6 Go to commentsCan someone fill me in please, I've read a number of Ben Smith articles now and it seems he's got something again South Africa? Surely, this game was over and done with 7 months ago. Can't we have something a bit more interesting and relevant, or is this the calibre of journalist on this site?
228 Go to commentsNot sure what the Welsh are moaning about. They’ve had far more players off England, than England have had off Wales. Guys like Josh Hathaway and Kane James will play for Wales in the end. And they’ll be fsr better players for having played in the Gallagher Premiership, than they ever would have been had they stayed mired in the shambles that is Welsh rugby.
3 Go to commentsThis is all being blown totally out of proportion. First of all, since half the Irish team isn’t Irish - it’s very likely that none of the Irish players said that at all and, thus, we’re not being arrogant. Second, since half the Irish team is Kiwi - it’s very likely the Kiwi players were predicting a NZ SA World Cup final. Which they got spot on. Good on them!
163 Go to commentsAha. An Irishman with logic! Follow the flow: - Ireland peaks with a >80% win record between 2020 and 2023. And then… - crashes out of another QF at the WC; - Beat a poor French Team; - Beat 6N wooden spoonists Italy; - Play shite against eventual wooden spoonists Wales; - Lose against the most boring, “the worst English team ever” , a team widely regarded as unable to attack; - scrape through against Scotland. This article, No - Trimble, is on the money! Except for one glaring statement: _The Springboks have a few aces in the hole in this debate being the reigning world champions and official world number ones_ There is no debate, boys and girls. There it is. In black and white. “Reigning World Champions and OFFICIAL world number ones”. Come July, the overrated Andy Farrell and this overhyped team are going to enter into a world of hurt.
86 Go to commentsI’d like to know what homoerotic events Daniel enjoyed at 8th man. I clearly missed out!
19 Go to commentsThis article is missing some detail, like some actual context or info about what led to him abusing the ref.
2 Go to comments*They used to say that football is a gentleman sport watched by hooligans and rugby is a hooligan sport watched by gentlemen. How times have changed.*
3 Go to commentsexcept ot wasnt late wasnt late at all so dont know why you all saying its late he commits early and its your fault fir not paying attention
30 Go to commentsNot sure the Bulls need another average utility back in their ranks. Chamberlain has been ok for the Sharks but is by no means an X-Factor player. Bulls bought several utility backs which they barely use. A typical example would be Henry Immelman who plays mostly Fullback. The Bulls however have rarely played him this year and he has played wing or centre. Bulls want to build depth but seems like they have too many surplus players
1 Go to commentsABs lost against a side playing without a hooker - The guy playing, had one shoulder. Line outs were a gimme for the ABs, and the last 8 minutes 14 played 14 against a team that had been smashed 3 weeks in a row… Yet with all that possession, with all that territory, with all the advantages they actually had, especially in the last 8 minutes, they couldn’t buy a point. Those last 8 minutes determined if they outplayed the Boks or not. History will show that the Boks completely outplayed the ABs, especially in those last 8 minutes, the business end of any rugby match
228 Go to commentsWould’ve, could’ve, should’ve, didn’t.
228 Go to commentsKok will become a fan favourite
1 Go to commentsI am really looking forward to Leigh Halfpenny playing his first Super rugby game for the Crusaders Playing a long side his former Welsh and Scarlets team mate Johnny McNicoll.Johnny has been playing great, back in a Crusaders jersey.The attack has strengthened big time. Also looking forward to David Havili at 10. David is a class act, it also allows Dallas McLeod to remain at 12. A good thing.
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