Scotland have produced a blistering display of attacking rugby to hand Eddie Jones just his second defeat as England head coach and end the visitors’ Grand Slam aspirations with a 25-13 Six Nations victory at Murrayfield.
Led by the brilliance of Huw Jones, who scored a brace of tries, and Finn Russell – criticised before the game but at the heart of Scotland’s best play – the hosts opened up a 16-point halftime lead, with Sean Maitland also touching down.
England improved after the break with a converted Owen Farrell try, but Sam Underhill was shown a yellow card to inhibit England’s hopes as the hosts expertly navigated the final 35 minutes to register a famous victory.
With Ireland earlier securing a bonus point win against Wales, their five-point lead over England in the standings puts them in a strong position to reclaim the title they last won in 2015.
Following a pre-game scuffle in the tunnel, the opening exchanges were full-blooded but dominated by Scotland who showed plenty of attacking intent which yielded a penalty, kicked by Greig Laidlaw for a 3-0 lead.
Buoyed by a vociferous Murrayfield crowd, the hosts consistently stretched the visitors’ defence and Jones collected a deft Russell grubber kick to dive over next to the posts to score Scotland’s first home try against England since 2004.
Farrell kept the visitors in touch with two penalties, but their attack was lethargic and in defence they simply could not contain Scotland with Russell and Jones combining to create the field position for Maitland to dive over in the corner.
At 15-6 down, a series of attacking penalties hampered England and their indiscipline was compounded shortly before halftime when Jones burst through and held off Mike Brown and Anthony Watson to score.
England’s response after the break was emphatic with Farrell cutting a superb line through the Scottish defence to reduce the deficit to nine points in the 44th minute.
Farrell had a second try ruled out following a knock on in the build-up but any hopes of closing the gap further were dealt a major blow when Underhill was shown yellow for a dangerous tackle in the 66th minute.
Russell’s resulting penalty gave Scotland a 12-point lead which they defended superbly to seal a stunning victory in Gregor Townsend’s first Calcutta Cup clash as coach.
“It’s a great feeling,” Townsend said. “We knew how important this week was going to be, what it meant to our supporters and the players played with some real pride.”
Machpants
Roar Guru
Yet they have one of (the most?) light weight back division in tier 1. I'm pretty sure that is a dated generalisation
Machpants
Roar Guru
The video of Farrell pushing Scottish players out of the way cos he had to get to the toilet FAST
Machpants
Roar Guru
Farrell is not far off, see his antics in the tunnel barging past like it was already game time. I suppose that makes him actually beat one defender at that ground
Derm
Roar Guru
I doubt they’ll come with full strength. Like the November series, the test matches will be used to develop some newer/younger players by both sides.
Neil Back
Roar Rookie
Well, I’m positive you can’t call it a ‘dynasty’. And before you go off on one, it would be really useful if you understood what a word actually means.
Taylorman
Guest
Not sure you can call it a ‘dynasty’ when youve not even played the top side, unless you are that side of course. Do they have ‘second tier’ dynasties? The demise of SA abd oz last two years explains Englands rise, and theyre still losing to NH sides as they always have. Not a lots changed in NH rugby, the SH sides are just getting weaker, for various ‘real’ reasons.
Neil Back
Roar Rookie
The only problems with this Dipper, is Eddie's post-match press conference was chock full of praise for the Scotish performance https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MVBMmH5mOb8 Got your link? And ESPN's neutral and less angry view, had Cole completing 5 tackles in defence and missing none. Hardly prodigious I'll grant you, but still a million miles away from what you saw https://www.specsavers.com.au/
Crash Ball2
Guest
Eddie Jones, graceless: "Congratulations to Scotland. They were too good for us. That's human nature. We just didn't meet the challenge." Yep, have the arrogant muppet hanged, drawn and quartered post-haste!
Nope
Guest
I reckon England have plateaued for the time being. Jones took a very under performing side and got them up to speed very quickly. He had the advantage of the bulk of the group already having played together for a few years so only a few tweaks were required. Whether he can get them to the next level is the question. When he coached the Brumbies he had the benefit of having a group of outstanding players to call on - Gregan, Larkham, Roff, Smith etc
piru
Roar Rookie
And stood against him Proud Eddie's army And sent him homeward Tae think again Well done the Scots!
Jeff
Guest
Haha. The Non Neutral view is at it again. Firstly, if you head over to the The Silver Fern , most of the posters there are calling Owen Farell the best 2nd5 in the world. So I don't think it's remotely accurate to say that kiwis won't praise other players. As for Retallick having a bad game, you have to remember the context. First of all, that's Retallick's first serious game in six months. Secondly, it's a relatively meaningless game compared to a Six Nations Test. Guys like Retallick and co are looking at hitting top gear around May, not now. Big difference but as expected, you will make t most ridiculous comparisons to prove your point.
Big Dipper
Guest
Wonderful display. Clearly Scotland have worked out the new breakdown laws better than Eddie Jones who was graceless immediately after the game. BTW Why does Eddie Jones use that lump Dan Cole. I noticed that The Guardian gave him a 6/10 (one of the higher ratings for an England player) but I watched him most of the game. Apart from scummaging (where he constantly turned in illegally and appeared to be trying to drag the Scotland loosehead down with outside arm), he did bugger all. I don't think he carried once and he made about two tackles (plus a couple of misses). He rarely cleans out effectively and most of the time he jogs from ruck to ruck just to lean on it or set himself up as a pillar. He probably gets a Million quid for this. Obesity has market value apparently.
Cliff (Bishkek)
Guest
Fionn, I am not certain who Hunt has as a Solicitor, but RA and Qld. Rugby need to be very careful how they tread on cancelling any contracts. He has been found "Not guilty" with "Charges Dismissed". The use of a prescription drug without a prescription is not a strong case to cancel a contract. He could clearly sue the RA and Qld. Rugby!! Be that as it may - Europe and Japan wait for the decision!!
englishbob
Guest
@ Taylorman, I dunno they haven't become a crap team overnight. For me this was the culmination of a steady introversion of England's attacking mindset over the 2017/2018 season. 2016 was immaculate(no nz comments please, they both agreed not to play each other, its over now) 2017 noticeably less so, 2018 is shaping up badly. These players have showed previously an ability to put the ball through the hands, this loss for me is in preparation and mindset. Much was made of the scrum work with Georgia, but Scotland couldn't be more different from Georgia so an odd choice, this game was never going to be about the scrums. I hope EJ starts picking some of the younger more mobile forwards we have available, while it probably wouldn't have made a difference to the end result, a back row of 6 Armand 7 Underhill and 8 Hughes (who was quite good to be fair) would have been more effective than playing three locks and robshaw who moves glacially now. I suspect England will lose to france, maybe beat Ireland at home, and lose atleast one, maybe all of the tests in SA. This is more like the experience of being an England rugby fan i grew up with in the 1990's :)
Neil Back
Roar Rookie
Except it isn’t.
Neil Back
Roar Rookie
What makes you think England started it?
Taylorman
Guest
Yes their ability to put the ball through the hands is almost non existent.
Taylorman
Guest
True, Jones had better takes his mind off the ABs game cos he’s got a tougher mission in SA if he wants to win the series.
Taylorman
Guest
Scotland at Murrayfield seems to be a gimme for some sides...?
Taylorman
Guest
What? The best lock in world rugby? Surely not.