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England player ratings vs South Africa - RWC final
Despite owning the tag of favourites coming into the game, there was nothing England could do to stop the power and precision of South Africa in Yokohama, as the Springboks wrapped up their third World Cup title with a 32-12 win.
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From early handling errors and a beleaguered scrum, England were always in an uphill battle and they simply couldn’t replicate the intensity of the semi-final game they turned in against the All Blacks. It’s a result that takes England’s tally of World Cup finals to one win and three losses.
RugbyPass have rated all 23 of the England players below in what was a disappointing end to an encouraging campaign from Eddie Jones’ young group.
- Elliot Daly – 4
Daly defended well when South Africa came at him on the ground, although he was exposed on a couple of occasions by the smart kicking games of Faf de Klerk and Willie le Roux. He wasn’t able to provide the creativity in the midfield and the linking with the wide channels that he usually does.
- Anthony Watson – 5.5
The wing was largely contained by South Africa as an attacking threat. He was excellent dealing with the high balls that the Springboks peppered England with, though he wasn’t able to impact the game too much beyond that.
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- Manu Tuilagi – 5.5
A quiet game from Tuilagi who had a couple of impactful carries and tackles, but they were far and far between across the 80 minutes.
- Owen Farrell – 6.5
With the struggles in the half-backs, Farrell wasn’t delivered too much good ball to work with, though he invariably made the right decisions and didn’t compound errors. He made four of his five kicks and was one of the more impressive English players in the final, despite the team’s struggles.
- Jonny May – 6.5
May was effortlessly consistent. His work chasing kicks and dealing with aerial balls, even under heavy pressure, was flawless. He didn’t get too many opportunities to run at South Africa but when he did, he was good to make a defender or two miss.
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- George Ford – 5
The fly-half lost out on a high ball and kicked out on the full in a disappointing first half. He was part of an England side that struggled with their handling significantly early on. Just couldn’t find a way to influence the game positively with the Springboks pressuring him.
- Ben Youngs – 4.5
An out of sorts first half from Youngs, whose passing and decision-making was below par. His box-kicking was relatively effective in terms of distance, though they tended to just outkick the chase. He wasn’t able to change that after the interval.
- Mako Vunipola – 6
Vunipola was targeted at the scrum by South Africa, as Frans Malherbe and Vincent Koch went to work. His influence in the loose was solid, though, and warrants him a slightly higher rating than the one recorded by Dan Cole.
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- Jamie George – 5.5
The hooker wasn’t his usual effervescent self in the loose, though he was successful with five of his six lineouts. Overplayed, slightly, sending one offload into touch, when England could have found space on the subsequent phase.
- Kyle Sinckler – N/A
Unfortunately, Sinckler had to leave the pitch after just two minutes as he was seemingly knocked out in an early tackle.
- Maro Itoje – 6
A quiet game by Itoje’s standards. He led England in tackling in the first half and was able to disrupt a couple of South African mauls, though it was not enough to influence the game in the same ways he had in the quarter-final and semi-final.
https://twitter.com/RugbyPass/status/1190606398746497024
- Courtney Lawes – 6.5
Perhaps England’s standout player prior to the interval. Lawes’ was his side’s most prominent ball-carrier outside of Billy Vunipola and was the target for all four of their successful first-half lineouts. He was unlucky to be replaced at half-time in a decision that was likely dictated by the struggling scrum.
- Tom Curry – 6.5
Curry started the game strongly with a couple of impactful carries and industrious chasing, though South Africa’s physicality advantage began to show as the game went on. He spilt a ball in the back field and was held up in the carry by opposite number Pieter-Steph du Toit, who was ruthlessly impressive.
- Sam Underhill – 7
Like Lawes, Underhill was one of the few England players to really step up in the first half. He forced a knock-on in the tackle, an area where he was typically physical, and also stepped up as a carrying and support option.
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https://twitter.com/RugbyPass/status/1190583393878237184
- Billy Vunipola – 6
The No8 grew into the game after being part of England’s poor start in terms of handling where his misjudged pass ended up costing his side three points. He stepped up as a carrier, though, as the game went on, and his offloads in contact were usually good for an extra couple of metres for the English pack.
Replacements
- Luke Cowan-Dickie – 6
The Exeter hooker connected with both of his lineouts and had one powerful carry.
- Joe Marler – 7
The arrival of the loosehead significantly boosted England’s struggling scrum and he stemmed the flow of penalties that the English pack was conceding at the set-piece.
- Dan Cole – 4
It was a tough day at the office for Cole, who had to play 77 minutes and was immediately put under pressure at the scrum by Tendai Mtawarira. It was a problem that was only exacerbated by the arrival of Steven Kitshoff.
- George Kruis – 6
The lock helped add some ballast to the scrum in the second half and he became the favoured lineout target with Lawes off the pitch.
- Mark Wilson – 6
Provided fresh energy in the chase and as a tackler, although he wasn’t able to sway the game at that point.
- Ben Spencer – N/A
Came on too late to have a real impact on the game.
- Henry Slade – 5
His knock-on in the carry gifted the ball to Cheslin Kolbe and wrapped up the win for the Springboks.
- Jonathan Joseph – n/a
Like Spencer, Joseph arrived relatively late and at that point, there was only defending left to be done.
WATCH: RugbyPass hears from some rowdy fans after the final in Yokohama
Comments on RugbyPass
Gee my Highlanders were terrible. They have gone backwards since the start of the season. The trouble began when we left Millar behind to prep as the 10 against the Brumbies and he was disconnected from the team that came back from Aussie. We rested Patchell for that game and we blew an avalanche of ball in good attacking positions in the 1st half. Against the Rebels we seem to of gone into a pod system with forwards hanging off from the breakdown leaving Fakatava to secure our ball!
72 Go to commentsPot Kettle, the English and French teams have done it for years.
19 Go to commentsHas virtually played every minute of previous games. Back row of Li Lo Willie , Grace and Blackadder would be the 1. Crusaders issue is a very average 1st 5 who cannot run. Kicking in general play is also below par They need to put Yong Kemara in. He must have so.e talent for them to bring him down from Waikato. Hoehepa would struggle to play in so.e club sided
4 Go to commentsI hope this a good thing making all these changes!
2 Go to commentsThe Hurricanes are good, especially with a decent coach now. However, let’s be real, the Crusaders and Chiefs are clearly a good degree weaker without the players they’ve lost overseas now. The Canes lost one player. It’s also why the aussie teams ‘seem’ to be stronger.
9 Go to commentsOr you could develop your own players instead of constantly taking from the SH competition and weakening it in the process? With all the player and financial resources these unions have compared to SH countries you’d think they could manage that, or is weakening the SH comps and their national sides an added bonus? Probably.
3 Go to commentsNot so fast Aaron, we might need you in black yet lol. God knows he’d be a lot less nerve-racking than hot and (very) cold players like Perofeta. It’s really a shame Reuben Love isn’t playing 10, we’ve got enough 15 options.
4 Go to commentsAnd those from the NH still seem to be puzzled (and delighted) why NZ’s depth isn’t what it once was. Over 600 NZ players overseas, that’s insane. This sort of deal is why Super Rugby coaches have admitted they struggle now to find enough quality to fill out their squads.
6 Go to commentsArticle intéressant ! La question devrait régulièrement se poser pour les jeunes français originaires de Nouvelle-Calédonie, Wallis-et-Futuna et de Polynésie entre la Nouvelle-Zélande et la Métropole… Difficile pour la fédération française de rugby de se positionner : soit le choix est fait de dénicher les jeunes talents et de les faire venir très tôt en Métropole, au risque de les déraciner, soit on prend le risque de se les faire “piller” par les All Blacks qui, telle une araignée, essaye de récupérer tous les talents des îles du Pacifique… À la France de se défendre en développant l’aura du XV de France et des clubs français dans ses collectivités d’Outre-mer !
3 Go to commentsWrong bay. He needs to come to the REAL BAY which is Bay Of Plenty and have a crack at making the Chiefs.
3 Go to commentsIs Barrett going play full back??? They already have all the centers…
15 Go to commentsForgive my ignorance, I might not fully understand so would appreciate clarification: Didn’t the Bulls have to fly with three different carriers, paid for by the South African Rugby Union, whilst Edinburgh got a chartered flight sponsored by EPCR? Also, as far as I understand it South African teams don’t yet share in the revenue from the competition and are not allowed to host Semi-finals or Finals at home. Surely if everyone wants South Africans to “take the competition seriously” then they must make South Africans feel welcome, allow them to share in the revenue, and give them the same levels of access as the teams from the other countries. Just a reminder that South Africa has a large and passionate Rugby audience. Just by virtue of our teams being a part of these competitions means that more of us are likely to watch the knockout games, even if our teams haven’t qualified. It would be silly to alienate such a large audience by making them feel unwelcome.
19 Go to commentsFirst of all. This guy is very much behind the curve. All the bleating, whingeing, whining and moaning took place days ago already. Not adding anything to the topic other than more bleating, whingeing, whining and moaning. 🍼 Second of all, not one mention of the fact that South African teams can’t get home semi finals or finals. The tournament was undermined and devalued by the administrators. 🤡 Thirdly, football teams often have to juggle selections in mid week games, premier games, champions league games etc. and will from time to time prioritize certain titles over others. 🐒 And lastly FEK Neil, and anyone else for that matter, for insisting on telling teams how to manage themselves. If they make what is largely a business decision that suits them and doesn’t suit you - tough shite. 💩 It’s not rocket science as to why the Bulls did what they did. If this guy is too slow to figure it out (and is deliberately not mentioning one of the key reasons why) then he isn’t a journalist. He should join the rest of us pundit plebs in comments section. 🥴
19 Go to commentsSo the first door to knock on Rob is Parliament followed by HMRC. The Irish Revenue deliver a 40% tax relief rebate on the HIGHEST EARNING TEN YEARS of every pro Irish rugby players contract earnings at retirement. That goes a long way to both retaining their best talent and freeing up wages for marquee players. Who knows, if that had been in place in the UK, you might not have been able to poach Hoggy and Jonny Gray from Glasgow…!!!
3 Go to comments1. True, if that “free” ticket means access to all but the prized exhibit - EVIP only. SA cannot host semis, even if they’ve earned it (see Sharks vs ASM Clermont Auvergne at… Twickenham Stoop). 2. Why no selective outrage over Lyon doing the exact same thing a week earlier? Out of all the countries France send the most “B teams”, why nobody talking about “disrespect” and “prioritising domestic leagues” and “kicking them out”? 3. Why no mention of the Sharks fielding all of their Springboks for the second rate Challenge cup QF? No commitment? 4. Why no mention of all the SA teams qualifying for respective euro knock out comps in the two seasons they’ve been in it? How many euro teams have qualified for KO’s in their history? Can’t compete? 5. Why no mention of SA teams beating French and English giants La Rochelle and Saracens? How many euro teams have done that in their history? Add no quality? The fact is that SA teams are only in their second season in europe, with no status and a fraction of the resources. Since joining the URC, SA has seen a repatriation of a number of players, and this will only grow once SA start sharing in the profits of competing in these comps, meaning bigger squads with greater depth and quality, meaning they don’t have to prioritise comps as they have to now - they don’t have imports from Pacifica and South America and everywhere else in between like “European” teams have - also less “Saffas” in Prem and T14, that’s what we want right? 'If the South Africans are in, they need to be all in' True, and we have to ensure we give them the same status and resources as we give everyone else to do just that. A small compromise on scheduling will go a long way in avoiding these situations, but guess what, France and England wont compromise on scheduling because they ironically… prioritise their domestic comps, go figure!
19 Go to commentsthe success of the premiership can be summarized by : only 10 teams. It makes a huge difference with the overcrowded top 14 (let us not talk about Leinster and URC…)
2 Go to commentsGood for him. The ABs were fooling around again with converted fullbacks that had a penetration of a marshmallow. Laumape or as Aki has shown for Ireland, go forward is important in the centres. If it had been DMac - Aki- Aumua - Ioane- Telea- Jordan in France the final result would have been different.
4 Go to commentsDan Carter a apporté son professionnalisme, des méthodes de travail, un esprit qui manquaient à l’USAP. Son influence, même une fois blessé a été énorme. Et pour citer une anecdote, certains soirs il venait de lui-même à l’entraînement des jeunes pour dispenser ses conseils. On ne peut pas compter ce qu’il a apporté au club en heures de jeu sur le terrain. Est-ce que le club en a eu pour son argent ? Avec la publicité sur son nom et le titre, je suppose que oui.
1 Go to commentsThe SA sides are suffering from a bum rap here. There isn’t a side anywhere in the world that would do things differently in their shoes. They’ve been set up to fail in the EPCR comps by vested interests, with last minute intercontinental travel requirements that costs an arm and a leg to book in advance just on the possibility they might be required. And the total nonsense that denies any chance of home venues is entirely biased and absolutely unsporting. Either EPCR, the Top14 & the Gallagher Premiership get it sorted on a fair and equitable sporting basis for ALL participants or expect the ridicule to continue. Right now, these comps are a joke!
19 Go to commentsSA sides should do the right thing and leave the champions cup, they are lowering the standard with completely one sided games, not up to the right level. The greatest club tournament in the world is being banjaxed by the weak SA sides.
19 Go to comments