England player rating vs Barbarians
England began their summer of rugby in disappointing fashion, losing 21-52 to the Barbarians at Twickenham. England’s embarrassment was compounded when George Kruis backheeled a conversion in his final ever competetive rugby game.
The first half was filled with tries but lacked the attacking impetus which so often typified these tests. In the end it was Will Skelton’s red card for a high tackle which brought the most drama in the first half. The Barbarians were leading at that point and held on to that advantage deep into the second half, demonstrating a resilience expected of an international outfit, not a scratch side.
15. Tommy Freeman – 6.5
You wouldn’t have known Freeman was making his England debut, given the composure he showed when securing deep kicks and running aggressively into traffic. The Saints star helped England score their first, running a tight support line with Smith.
14. Joe Cokanasiga – 5.5
The winger played with a point to prove, chasing down a kick early on, helping secure a turnover. Minutes later he streamed down the right wing, ball grasped in one hand, eating up space in the Barbarians half. While his positioning was found wanting, the Bath starter scored England’s opener.
13. Joe Marchant – 5
Marchant has been a mainstay of the free-flowing Harlequins backline but found it hard to transfer his attacking skills early in the encounter. While he didn’t make the same mistakes as his centre partner, he failed to shine brightly and stake a claim in the England midfield. Jack Nowell replaced Marchant in the 56th minute.
12. Mark Atkinson – 4
England’s new-look midfield did little to wow the Twickenham crowd. Atkinson made up half of that unit but was made to look sub-par by Damian Penaud, first when the winger handed him off and later when the Frenchman intercepted a pass to score the Barbarians’ third.
11. Jonny May – 5
After spending time sidelined by injury, May’s return to test rugby started badly, as the winger received a yellow and conceded a penalty try for intentionally knocking on a pass. May made amends in the second half, finishing smartly in the corner.
10. Marcus Smith – 6
England struggled to string together attacking phases in the face of a dogged Barbarians defence but nonetheless Smith was able to show flashes of his brilliance. Few flyhalfs can produce brilliant amidst chaos but Smith can. His dummy helped set up England’s first try and his expertly delivered miss-pass gave England their second. Midway through the second half he then got a try of his own.
9. Harry Randall –4
Quick ball from the ruck is Randall’s preference but that tactic bit back when the scrum half’s delivery was intercepted by Charles Ollivon who ran the length of the pitch to score. At times he made Smith’s life harder with erratic passes from the base of the ruck. He was replaced by Care early in the second half.
1. Bevan Rodd – 5
The loosehead looked lively around the field, covering ground with ease. But he struggled to impose himself at scrum time early and gave away numerous penalties for engaging prematurely. However, he later showed strength over the ball, winning an impressive turnover.
2. Jack Walker – 5
The debutant did well on his first England outing, bringing a frenetic energy to the front row which is seldom seen at this level of competition. He did look unnerved in the scrum but remained composed in defence. He was replaced by Jack Singleton in the 56th minute.
3. Will Collier – 4
Collier’s third England cap was largely uneventful, with the Harlequins prop struggling to impose himself against a large Barbarians pack. He was then surprisingly brought off in the 28th minute and replaced by Patrick Schickerling, but returned after the debutant was concussed.
4. Charlie Ewels – 4
Ewels has become a consistent feature in Eddie Jones’ England but struggled to do much to state a claim for a starting role in Australia.
5. Jonny Hill – 4
Hill’s return to the England setup was mixed in its outcome. An impressive line break was tempered by inconsistency at the lineout. The game’s stop-start nature did little to help Hill showcase his skills to Jones once more. Late in the day Hill also dropped a ball over the line to squander a try opportunity.
6. Tom Curry – 5
The captain for the day was uncharacteristically quiet both in the tackle and over the ball. At times Curry looked off the pace and made a few handling errors on his way, leading England in rather subdued fashion.
7. Sam Underhill – 5.5
The lack of flow in the contest did not help Underhill at the start. Although he looked imperious over the ball, with the Barbarians struggling to string together attacking phases, Underhill was unable to showcase his phenomenal tackle technique. He was replaced by Courtney Lawes in the 56th minute.
8. Calum Chick – 5
Came into the starting lineup as a late notice replacement for Alex Dombrandt. Chick carried powerfully but did little to put his name above the man who he replaced. In the tackle he appeared confident but lacked the x factor or Simmonds or Dombrandt. Was replaced by Willis early in the second half.
Replacements:
16. Jack Singleton – 5
Came on for Jack Walker in the 56th minute. Showed physicality in carries.
17. Will Goodrick-Clarke – 5
Came on for Collier as a tighthead, rather than his favoured loosehead.
18. Patrick Schickerling – 5
Schickerling made his international debut earlier than expected, replacing Collier on the 28th minute mark. Before the close of the half he was shouldered in the head by Will Skelton and permanently removed from the field.
19. Courtney Lawes – 5.5
Showed his worth when he came on for Underhill, hitting the rucks hard.
20. Jack Willis – 5
Came on in the 44th minute for Chick and instantly injected some pace to the attack.
21. Danny Care – 5
Danny Care made his long-overdue return to international rugby on the 44th minute to jubilated applause. However, he was responsible for defensive miscommunication which led to the Barbarians scoring almost instantly. He recovered, speeding up the England attacking phase play, transforming the look of Jones’ side.
22. Orlando Bailey – 4
Came on late in the game and had little time to make an impact.
23. Jack Nowell – 5.5
Nowell’s return to international rugby came in the 56th minute for Marchant, filling outside centre. He was sharp and carried powerfully, quickly becoming a pivotal figure in the England attack.
Comments on RugbyPass
Good to hear he would like to play the game at the highest level, I hadn’t been to sure how much of a motivator that was before now. Sadly he’s probably chosen the rugby club to go to. Try not to worry about all the input about how you should play rugby Joey and just try to emulate what you do on the league field and have fun. You’ll limit your game too much (well not really because he’s a standard athlete like SBW and he’ll still have enough) if you’re trying to make sure you can recycle the ball back etc. On the other hard, you can totally just try and recycle by looking to offload any and everywhere if you’re going to ground 😋
1 Go to commentsThis just proves that theres always a stat and a metric to use to justify your abilities and your success. Ben did it last week by creating an imaginary competition and now you did the same to counter his argument and espouse a new yardstick for success. Why not just use the current one and lets say the Boks have won 4 world cups making them the most successful world cup team. Outside of the world cup the All Blacks are the most successful team winning countless rugby championships and dominating the rankings with high win percentages. Over the last 4 years statistically the Irish are the best having the highest win rate and also having positive records against every tier 1 side. The most successful Northern team in the game has been England with a world cup title and the most six nations titles in history. The AB’s are the most dominant team in history with the highest win rate and 3 world cups. Lets not try to reinvent the wheel. Just be honest about the actual stats and what each team has been good at doing and that will be enough to define their level of success.
17 Go to commentsHow is 7’s played there? I’m surprised 10 or 11 man rugby hasn’t taken off. 7 just doesn’t fit the 15s dynamics (rules n field etc) but these other versions do.
7 Go to commentsPick Swinton at your peril A liability just like JWH from the Roosters Skelton ??? went missing at RWC
14 Go to commentsLike tennis, who have a ranking system, and I believe rugby too, just measure over each period preceding a world cup event who was the longest number one and that would be it. In tennis the number one player frequently is not the grand slam winner. I love and adore the All Blacks since the days of Ian Kirkpatrick when I was a kid in SA. And still do because they are the masters of running rugby and are gentleman on and off the field - in general. And in my opinion they have been the majority of the time the best rugby team in the world.
17 Go to commentsHaving overseas possessions in 2024 is absurd. These Frenchies should have to give the New Caledonians their freedom.
21 Go to commentsBell injured his foot didn’t he? Bring Tupou in he’ll deliver when it counts. Agree mostly but I would switch in the Reds number 8 Harry Wilson for Swinton and move Rob Valentini to 6 instead. Wilson is a clever player who reads the play, you can’t outmuscle the AB’s and Springboks, if you have any chance it’s by playing clever. Same goes for Paisami, he’s a little guy who doesn’t really trouble the likes of De Allende and Jordie Barrett. I’d rather play Carter Gordon at 12 and put Michael Lynagh’s boy at 10. That way you get a BMT type goalkicker at 10 and a playmaker at 12. Anyways, just my two cents as a Bok supporter.
14 Go to commentsThanks Brett, love your articles which are alway pertinent. It’s a difficult topic trying to have a panel adjudicating consistently penalties for red card issues. Many of the mitigating reasons raised are judged subjectively, hence the different outcomes. How to take away subjective opinions?
4 Go to commentsYes Sir! Surprising, just like Fraser would also have escaped sanction if he was a few inches lower, even if it was by accident that he missed! Has there really been talk about those sanctions or is this just sensational journalism? I stopped reading, so might have missed any notations.
4 Go to commentsAI is only as good as the information put in, the nuances of the sport, what you see out the corner of the eye, how you sum up in a split second the situation, yes the AI is a tool but will not help win games, more likely contribute to a loss, Rugby Players are not robots, all AI can do if offer a solution not the solution. AI will effect many sports, help train better golfers etc.
45 Go to commentsIt couldn’t have been Ryan Crotty. He wasn’t selected in either World Cup side - they chose Money Bill instead. And Money Bill only cared about himself, and that manager he had, not the team.
26 Go to commentsYawn 🥱 nobody would give a hoot about this new trophy. End of the day we just have to beat Ireland and NZ this year then they can finally shut up 🤐
17 Go to commentsTalking bout Ryan Crotty? Heard Crotty say in a interview once that SBW doesen't care about the team . He went on to say that whenever they lost a big game, SBW would be happy as if nothing happened, according to him someone who cares would look down.. Personally I think Crotty is in the wrong, not for feeling gutted but for expecting others 2 be like him… I have been a bad loser forever as it matters so much to me but good on you SBW for being able to see the bigger picture….
26 Go to commentsThis sounds like a WWE idea so Americans can also get excited about rugby, RUGBY NEEDS A INTERNATIONAL CALENDER .. The rugby Championship and Six Nations can be held at same time, top 3 of six nations and top 3 of Rugby championship (6 nations should include Georgia AND another qualifying country while Fiji, Japan and Samoa/Tonga qualifier should make out 6 Southern teams).. Scrap June internationals and year end tours. Have a Elite top six Cup and the Bottom 6 in a secondary comp….
17 Go to commentsThe rugby championship would be even stronger with Fiji in it… I know it doesen’t fit the long term plans of NZ or Aus but you are robbing a whole nation of being able to see their best players play for Fiji…. Every second player in NZ and AUS teams has Fijian surnames… shame on you!!! World rugby won’t step in either as France and England has now also joined in…. I guess where money is involved it will always be the poor countries missing out….
84 Go to commentsNo surprise there. How hard can it be to pick a ball off the ground and chuck it to a mate? 😂
2 Go to commentsSometimes people just like a moan mate!
4 Go to commentsexcellent idea ! rugby needs this 💪
17 Go to comments9 Brumbies! What a joke! The best performing team in Oz! Ditch Skelton for Swain or Neville. Ryan Lonergan ahead of McDermott any day! Best selection bolter is Toole … amazing player
14 Go to commentsI like this, but ultimately rugby already has enough trophies. Trying to make more games “consequential" might prove to be a fools errand, although this is a less bad idea than some others. Minor quibble with the title of the article; it isn’t very meaningful to say the boks are the unofficial world champions when it would be functionally impossible for the Raeburn trophy not to be held by the world champions. There’s a period of a few months every 4 years when there is no “unofficial” world champion, and the Raeburn trophy is held by the actual world champions.
17 Go to comments