1 A game of two halves
England merited their 14-11 interval lead, having kept the ball in hand, scored one excellent try and been close to two others. New Zealand’s kicking game was poor and they were hustled into mistakes at the breakdown, shades of 2012. As the weather changed and the rain fell, England did not modify their approach and after struggling to hold on to possession in their own half resorted to kicks that put no pressure on New Zealand’s back three. They had no wet-weather strategy and, having dominated possession and position in the first period, spent the first 35 minutes of the second period stuck in their own half for 75% of the time. They did not react to the changing conditions, unlike their opponents.
2 Coles in the sin-bin
The defining moment of the match came when Dane Coles was sent to the sin-bin for kicking Danny Care on the ankle. New Zealand were leading by two points but, when the hooker returned, that advantage had been extended to five. In the 10 minutes he was off the field England only once got into the All Blacks’ half. Richie McCaw’s men kept the ball in hand, not trying anything fancy but not averse to a pass out of the back of the hand, running down the clock and looking as if it were they who had the extra player. Care had kicked cleverly in the first half but three poor box-kicks in as many minutes, the last of which went straight out, led to him being pulled for Ben Youngs. England needed Owen Farrell to take charge and Alex Goode would have been a useful kicking option on the bench
3 Ball-carrying
England were hit hard by injuries before the match and the early loss of Courtney Lawes cost them a ball-carrier. With Billy Vunipola closely policed and not allowed to get into a rampaging stride, the home side lacked a metre-eating ball-carrier. Plus, there was no Manu Tuilagi in midfield, which made it surprising Semesa Rokoduguni was not brought in off his wing for an occasional foray. England’s forwards, including replacements, carried the ball for a total of 70 metres, Dave Attwood leading the way with 31. New Zealand’s back row exceeded that number (102) and their forwards’ total was 155. England will need ball-carriers against South Africa who, after their heavy defeat by Ireland, will surely go back to basics
4 Selection
Stuart Lancaster is restricted by England’s injury list, which includes seven 2013 Lions. His game plan for New Zealand was spot on, in the dry at least, but he needs his players to be able to react to changing circumstances. The third quarter was when the difference in experience between the sides told and also Farrell’s lack of rugby this season. In terms of nuts and bolts, England were good on Saturday: they had a 100% lineout and disrupted New Zealand’s, their scrum earned them a penalty try at the end and they made the breakdown a dogfight. What they lacked was someone who could turn the screw
5 Television match official
The New Zealand coach, Steve Hansen, with an eye on next year’s World Cup, which England are hosting, complained that the referee, Nigel Owens, belatedly asked for a review of Charlie Faumuina’s try because a television producer had told the television match official to take a look. His concern was that, if it becomes standard practice, home teams will have an advantage. What happened with Faumuina’s try was that, after Owens had awarded it, the television match official, Simon McDowell, saw a replay from behind the goal that suggested Faumuina had grounded the ball behind the line. And the prop had, with the white line part of an advertising logo for the autumn series sponsors. Why it was so close to the try-line is another matter
