Lancaster and England will be delighted with the bonus point win but that was far from a perfect performance. Brown was good, very good but the scrum was not and Fiji won far too many turnovers – as well as that, there was a dearth of decent running from England. Those aspects of England’s game will need to be fixed very soon, especially if they have dreams of defeating Wales and Australia. Thanks for all your emails and tweets and comments. Here is Robert Kitson’s match report from the game. Night!
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Full-time: England 35-11 Fiji
Well that was interesting.
CONVERSION! England 35-11 Fiji (Farrell)
Farrell finishes it all off by sneaking one through the posts.
TRY! England 33-11 Fiji (Billy Vunipola)
80 mins England get a lineout on the Fijian 10m line. Can they pull off something to get that point? They go off the top and Fiji slow them down. So they try their luck once more and Woods gets the crowd going with a nice break. That comes to nothing so Brown chances his arm. Only a sensational ankle tap stops him from getting his hat-trick. England work the ball once more. May attempts to run and leap his way over but fails so the ball goes back to Billy Vunipola. He goes for power and the referee goes for the TMO. Has he got it? He sure has.
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78 mins But it doesn’t look like they will get it. They try to work it wide and Brown – who has been England’s best player today – storms through a few more defenders but Fiji repel him and his team-mates before winning back possession.
76 mins After that try, Brown had a scorching break into the Fiji half and England now have a scrum against a very tired looking Fiji pack. The ball goes loose but Robshaw pounces on it to save possession. England looking for the precious bonus point.
CONVERSION! England 28-11 Fiji (Farrell)
Farrell scores from out wide.
TRY! England 26-11 Fiji (Brown)
72 mins Brown has his second try of the night and that should see them home, even if they are not playing well. England got the ball in hand, just on front of the Fiji posts. They moved it wide on the left and May offloaded to Farrell who popped a sensational offload to the supporting Brown. From there, Brown powered his way over the line.
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71 mins Just saw a replay of that Nadolo break a few minutes ago. It all came from a missed tackle from Burgess. Find it hard to understand why Lancaster took him. Far too big a gamble for a World Cup.
69 mins It’s hard to disagree with this:
Pocock, Warburton and co. must be licking their lips looking at what Fiji have done to England rucks in this second half. #RWC2015
— Murray Kinsella (@Murray_Kinsella) September 18, 2015
Though their last effort at the scrum was much, much better.
PENALTY! England 21-11 Fiji (Farrell)
67 mins Hmmm. Maybe not. Not if they give away penalties for offside right in front of their own posts. Can Farrell get his first three points of the World Cup with his first kick of the World Cup? He sure can.
PENALTY! England 18-11 Fiji (Volavola)
... Volavola slots it over with ease. Fiji couldn’t, could they?
64 mins Speaking of Nadolo, he has just broke through the England defence, pushing away English players away as if they were not there. The break ends with a penalty for Fiji. Volavola steps up ...
62 mins But never mind that. Fiji have a penalty, not too far from the posts and in a sweet spot for someone as talented as Nadolo. However, he somehow manages to miss it.
60 mins Fiji make a second substitution. Yato trots on in place of Waqaniburotu. England make some changes too. Barritt and Ford go and Burgess and Farrell come.
58 mins England decide to do some running. They try the left, then the right. In between, the action is peppered with some big hits. On the right, Fiji turn the ball over but it does not take long for England to pick up possession once more. Robshaw makes a decent burst near the 22. The Fiji defence look exhausted. England are 10m away ... but it all falls apart when Wigglesworth is done for holding on.
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56 mins Fiji get a lineout, well inside the England half, but the red shirts manage to push them back easily enough. Fiji are starting to look tired now. Moments after that Launchbury shepherds Nadolo into touch with ease.
53 mins England make a quadruple substitution. On comes Launchbury, Billy and Mako Vunipola and Wigglesworth. Off goes Youngs, Parling, Marler and Morgan.
51 mins England are awarded a penalty from some illegal work at the scrum. They kick that long to the left and a maul is set up. They work that for a bit before giving the ball back to Ford. He cross-kicks looking to find Watson but the England wing cannot get to it. England should’ve had an advantage after that but Wood was punished for taking a player out off the ball and is lucky not to get a yellow.
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50 mins No need to worry England fans, the stats are on your side.
10 - #ENG have not lost after holding a half-time lead of 10+ points since 2008 (v Wales). Calm.
— OptaJonny (@OptaJonny) September 18, 2015
48 mins After that kickfest, there was some nice running and nice hands from Fiji in the middle of the park. In the midst of that, Barritt was done for obstruction and Fiji were awarded a penalty. Nadolo got out that sweet left boot of his once more but his effort from distance was sent wide.
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46 mins A kick goes one way. A kick goes another way. Yawn.
44 mins One half-time sub to tell you about. Cavubati has come on for Ratuniyarawa. Meanwhile, scrum to Fiji. Matawalu puts it in and the ball is worked back to Nadolo. He kicks one out on the full and grimaces immediately. He knows he did wrong. Lineout to England deep in Fiji terrotiry, from which a rolling maul is set up. Fiji win the ball back at the breakdown and ease the pressure on their defence.
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42 mins “The ref has been woefully unfair on Fiji,” reckons Andrew Hurley. “Matawalu goes into the bin for a miner offence (the penalty try sufficed) yet Marler, the most illegal scrummager amongst the top 10 teams, doesn’t get a yellow! England have a huge problem with Marler, he’s been exposed for 6 months now, he can’t scrummage straight.”
40 mins And we are back for the second half. England are still in red but have switched sides and now attack from left to right. That first-half was a rather scrappy affair, no?
Match not entirely dead yet, particularly if Fiji improve their restart work..England's muscular bench may have to do some heaving #RWC2015
— robert kitson (@robkitson) September 18, 2015
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Half-time: England 18-8 Fiji
... but it falls short. And that is that for the first half.
39 mins Matawalu wins a penalty in the middle of the field and decides to run it. He breaks through a few lines and pushes England backwards. Volavola gets the ball in hand and tries to stab one through the England defence. On their own line, England are forced into some serious work. It is cleared and turned over but England give possession away one more cheaply. Fiji do nothing with that but moments later May breaks and wins a penalty 52m out. Ford lines it up ...
37 mins “Overhead cam shows England’s loosehead scrumming sideways and absolutely destroyed on every packdown,” reckons Mike Mnichowicz. “Will scrum penalties, or the lack thereof be this year’s WRC farce?” Well, folks, will they?
PENALTY! England 18-8 Fiji (Nadolo)
35 mins Fiji get a penalty and a chance to put three more points on the board. Nadolo’s gets his left foot out and from a central position, a decent way out, he sweeps the ball between the posts.
PENALTY! England 18-5 Fiji (Ford)
33 mins Penalty to England via an offside by Nayacalevu. Ford puts the ball down in front of the posts, about 30 yards out. He does not miss.
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TRY! England 15-5 Fiji (Nadolo)
31 mins Fiji thought they had scored a few minutes ago but they definitely have now. They won possession from that England scrum and in front of the posts Volavola hit the most delightful cross-field kick in the direction of Nadolo. Watson went up for it but his positioning is poor and he has no chance of beating the height of the on-rushing Nadolo to it when the ball is in the air like that. The conversion is missed by Volavola.
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28 mins No he hasn’t! Just as Fiji are about to take the conversion, a reply comes on the TV and that shows that Matawalu, who was under pressure from the aforementioned May and Brown, was not in control of the ball. Heartbreak for Fiji but a scrum for England.
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27 mins Scrum to Fiji, who now have Matawalu back on the pitch. England are turned with ease and Matawalu emerges from the back with the ball in hand. He turns on the afterburners and pelts his way down the wing, leaving everyone in his wake. May and Brown eventually get their hands on him at the line but it looks like Matawalu has got the ball down. Or has he?
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25 mins Apparently, England’s first try, which came in the 13th minute, is the fastest in the opening match at the Rugby World Cup. There you go. You can impress your mates with that one.
TRY! England 15-0 Fiji (Brown)
23 mins ... England have their second try of the game. Fiji had a lineout near their corner on the left. they try to go long but Wood reads it beautifully and takes possession. That is recycled quickly and some even quicker hands from England see the ball out wide on the left and in the possession of Brown. He eases over the line from a few yards out. Ford misses the conversion by this much.
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22 mins That is kicked and it lands inside the Fijian 22. Wood wins the lineout and some neat hands from England see the ball swept outside. It lands in the hands of Watson but a superb tackle from Nayacalevu sees him put out of touch. But there is no need to worry about that missed opportunity because ...
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20 mins Ratuniyarawa went in on nasty on Robshaw during the clean out and the TMO is having a look at it. He reckons Ratuniyarawa went in with the shoulder and that ain’t cool. A penalty to England is awarded.
18 mins Scrum to Fiji. It’s not straight and Talebula, the full-back, is forced to drop the ball in. Fiji send it down the pitch. The kick that is far too long but it gives Brown plenty of time to think about his own kick. However, Brown suffers brain freeze and kicks it out of play.
16 mins England are in total control of this match. They have been camped in the Fijian half for the last few minutes now.
Only 15 minutes gone, but Mr. Peyper has a happy trigger finger tonight.
— Andy McGeady (@andymcgeady) September 18, 2015
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14 mins In the aftermath of that try, by the way, Matawalu was awarded a yellow card so Fiji are down by 10 points and down to 14 men. Not a great start for them.
CONVERSION! England 10-0 Fiji (Ford)
Ford does not miss from a few yards out in the centre.
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TRY! England 8-0 Fiji
13 mins Penalty try to England! England are awarded a penalty try off the back of a seriously powerful rolling maul that came from that penalty and was hauled down by Fiji.
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12 mins England go long on their second lineout but Fiji steal. However, they decided they don’t want possession so they cede it to England. Hold on there is something interesting happening here. May, trying to break the line, had his leg picked up by Waqaniburotu, leaving him almost in a dangerous position. The referee and the TMO decide that a penalty is all England deserve.
10 mins It’s Fiji’s turn to attack but they are lose in possession and sloppy with their hands, this giving England a chance to put some pressure on their defence via a lineout on the right. They win that and move right. Brown tries to thread one through for May but Fiji are alert to the danger.
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8 mins Watson wins the ball in the air on the right and the crowd roar. That spurs England on and they work it to the left. Fiji stall their momentum and England are forced back to the other side. The move eventually breaks down and Fiji regain possession.
6 mins Volavola lines up the penalty. It is wide on the left and from a very tight angle. It looks to be going goalward but takes a left turn and comes back off the post.
5 mins That penalty will have settled any early nerves for England but Fiji look a touch nervous already. Meanwhile, Fiji get their first scrum. Matawalu puts the ball in and Fiji run it wide on the left. Nadolo gets his hands on the ball for the first time but goes nowhere. Eventually, Barritt gives away a penalty from the bottom of the ruck.
PENALTY! England 3-0 Fiji (Ford)
3 mins England turn the Fiji scrum and the Fijians are penalised by our South African referee. Ford puts the ball down in front of the posts, right in the centre of the pitch, just outside the 22. He takes his time and slots it over with ease.
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2 mins Youngs caught the ball and England’s forwards get to work. It is sent back to Ford and kicks it long. It should be an easy one for Volavola but he is more nervous than a teenager on their first date and he fumbles deep inside his own half. Scrum England.
Summary
1 min And with a swing of Volavola’s right boot we are up and running. England are playing the first half in a right to left fashion.
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Finally. The players emerge, England from the away dressing room, Fiji from the home one. (They used it for the game against Ireland so it won’t have come as too much of a shock for them.) England, lost the toss, and are draped in red. The crowd roar with all their might as the players enter the onto the pitch and it’s not too long before the anthems get going along with Nadolo’s tears, which are streaming down his face.
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Lancaster is talking to the man with the mic. Here are the key quotes:
“It’s a big game, isn’t it?”
“The boys are ready.”
“We want to put in a positive performance.”
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Re that last stat. That means England are going to win the World Cup, right?
7 - #ENG have won their last 7 at Twickenham, their best run since winning 22 in a row in the lead up to the 2003 @rugbyworldcup. HQ.
— OptaJonny (@OptaJonny) September 18, 2015
“From the other side of Offa’s Dyke,” hollers Matt Dony, “I wasn’t particularly confident even before the Italy bloodbath. Without Webb and Halfpenny I’m even less so. All I can hope is that England suffer at least one hilarious tonking (because, yes, we are that petty-minded, thankyouverymuch) and tonight seems as good a night as any. Come on Fiji. Entertain the world!”
In case you are wondering how the Guardian’s bunch of rugby hacks figure this tournament is going to pan out, or indeed want something to beat them over the head with once they get a thing or two wrong, then this piece should be right up your street.
28 - #FJI have scored at least one try in each of their last 28 games, the longest such current run in Test rugby. Flying.
— OptaJonny (@OptaJonny) September 18, 2015
The teams
England: 15 – Mike Brown; 14 – Anthony Watson, 13 – Jonathan Joseph, 12 – Brad Barritt, 11 – Jonny May; 10 – George Ford; 9 – Ben Youngs; 1 – Joe Marler, 2 – Tom Youngs, 3 – Dan Cole, 4 – Geoff Parling, 5 –Courtney Lawes, 6 –Tom Wood, 7 – Chris Robshaw, 8 – Ben Morgan.
Replacements: 16 – Rob Webber, 17 – Mako Vunipola, 18 – Kieran Brookes, 19 – Joe Launchbury, 20 – Billy Vunipola, 21 – Richard Wigglesworth, 22 – Owen Farrell, 23 – Sam Burgess.
Fiji: 15 – Metuisela Talebula; 14 – Waisea Nayacalevu, 13 – Vereniki Goneva, 12 – Gabiriele Lovobalavu, 11 – Nemani Nadolo; 10 – Ben Volavola, 9 – Nikola Matawalu; 1 – Campese Ma’afu, 2 – Sunia Koto, 3 – Manasa Saulo; 4 – Apisalome Ratuniyarawa, 5 – Leone Nakarawa; 6 – Dominiko Waqaniburotu, 7 – Akapusi Qera, 8 – Sakiusa Masi Matadigo.
Replacements: 16 –Talemaitoga Tuapati, 17 – Peni Ravai, 18 – Isei Colati, 19 – Tevita Cavubati, 20 – Peceli Yato, 21 – Nemia Kenatale, 22 – Joshua Matavesi, 23 – Asaeli Tikoirotuma.
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So, people, what are your thoughts for tonight’s game? An easy England win? An upset for Fiji?
Prince Harry is back. And he didn’t even shave. How disrespectful. He trots out a word or two – during which his voice breaks – about how he hopes rugby will inspire the nation and how good all the lads are to just get here in the first place. “Rugby,” he adds “has changed dramatically in my lifetime but it remains a game founded on a code of values.” “We’re ready. Game on,” is how he ends it. Rousing stuff really. With that out of the way we are (almost) officially open. That wasn’t so bad now, was it?
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All focus is now on this giant, illuminated rugby ball which looks like it is being birthed by the ground. The panels are pulled away and the rule breaker himself, Webb Ellis, makes his way back onto the scene from stage right. With the help of a couple players he climbs his way to the top of the ball and raises the trophy in triumph. And we are almost done.
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We now have 20 legends representing the 20 nations of the World Cup. John Hayes – oddly – represents Ireland (was BOD or Keith Wood not available?), Chris Patterson is there for Scotland and Shane Williams is decked in the Wales colours. They and the rest are welcomed warmly but it is Martin Johnson who gets the biggest cheer of the lot.
All the other legends have kept hold of their individual rugby balls as they walked off. Johnno just booted his into the crowd.
— Sam Peters (@Sam_sportsnews) September 18, 2015
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We are back to the Twickenham pitch that is covered in fireworks and singers and rough terrain, something akin to the Giant’s Causeway. The groundsmen must be pulling their hair out.
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We start off being treated to an inspirational speech from a schoolboy and sunshine on British school fields and ultimately the birth of rugby, that moment William Webb Ellis picked up the ball and did one. He is seen, with perfectly gelled hair, running and running and out the gate he goes. As he does, he sweeps past Prince Harry and Jonny Wilkinson. “Don’t worry, Jonny, it’ll never catch on,” honks the Prince.
5, 4, 3, 2, 1 ... And it is off we go ...
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Brett Gosper, World Rugby chief, said they invited Jeremy Corbyn but he couldn't make. Royalty, cameras, anthems, Twickenham. Probably wise.
— Owen Gibson (@owen_g) September 18, 2015
And here is Michael Aston with some World Cup predictions. “I have a feeling the Springboks will win it all and the biggest shock will be England failing to get out of the group of death.” I’ve a feeling Michael might be right about England but reckon New Zealand might have too much for everyone else.
“Evening Ian,” cheers Robin Hazlehurst with the first email of the World Cup. “Permission to be nervous sir? This could be a very short and painful tournament if tonight goes wrong. Can you just clarify exactly what kicks off at 20:00, is it the match or the show? I’m not very excited about being in a Friday night city pub trying to watch an expressionist modern dance performance, but I’d hate to arrive late and miss the first quarter of the match. Guess I’ll risk the humiliation and get there a bit before 8.” Permission granted but, please Robin, be sure to be in place with pint in hand before 8, for 8 is when the match gets going.
From our man in the ground:
More echoes of 2012's green and pleasant land... pic.twitter.com/zI0IuvflVq
— Owen Gibson (@owen_g) September 18, 2015
Well, it’s almost time for the opening ceremony. You’re excited, aren’t you? We can tell. But you are probably more excited about the thought of actual rugby and the ups and downs of this tournament. With this in mind, anyone got any predictions that they would like to share with the world? Predictions for winners, losers, most exciting players to watch, surprise packages etc all welcome at the usual email address.
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And this is what we were given four years ago in New Zealand:
This is what awaits us people:
Twickenham this evening.. pic.twitter.com/FstRWZHagU
— Mark Souster (@SousterRugby) September 18, 2015
Good evening
So here we are. Breathe in, breathe out, get comfortable on your couch. Make sure that you have switched your phone to silent, make sure that adequate refreshments are within arm’s reach, make sure that you are not wearing red trousers or that your collar is in the vertical position, this is not 2005 people. This is 2015. This is the Rugby World Cup. The wait has been longer than Pippen’s arms but finally it is upon us.
Well, it is almost upon us. There is the small matter of the opening ceremony to get out of the way first. The theme, you might be disappointed to learn, will not centre on the great cartoons of the 1980s – like M.A.S.K. or Jayce and the Wheeled Warriors or even Rude Dog and The Dweebs – and how they influenced the growth of the sport throughout the northern hemisphere, but will instead focus on the “breaking new ground” and will give you the story of rugby’s birth as well as the journey to the World Cup. All of this will be seen through the vision of choreographer Kim Gavin. (He of the 2012 Olympics closing ceremony and Ant and Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway.) But come here, before you start rolling your eyes and saying you’d rather be watching a snail sprint or any movie starring Nicolas Cage, here is some good news for you: the whole thing is going to be done in 20 minutes. That’s right. Twenty minutes. You could do 20 minutes standing on your head. Then, it will finally be upon us. For real, for real.
And what a way to get it all going. England v Fiji in Twickenham. Pool A is easily the hardest pool in the tournament. Not only does it contain the hosts and a team ranked 9th in the world, it also has the pedigree and talents of a two-time winner of the World Cup and the team ranked second in the world in Australia as well as the team ranked fifth in Wales. (There is also Uruguay but as well as they did to beat Russia over two legs and get here, a squad packed with amateurs should not cause the four aforementioned nations too much trouble.) All of which means England need to be up and running and scoring and tackling from the get go. There can be no bedding in period, there can be no waiting around. They need to be winning right from the start.
That is not going to be easy. Fiji have played six matches since the turn of the year and they are unbeaten in the last five of them – the only defeat coming against New Zealand Maori. And it was only last month that they won the Pacific Nations Cup for the third time. OK, you have a point, none of those opponents are as good as England and there is a lack of forward experience in the side but their rugby during that tournament showed that Fiji have speed and skill as well as plenty of intelligence and of course, Leone Nakarawa. Nakarawa, in case you didn’t know, is the lock who was locked up in military prison and was only let out after he led the Fijian army team to a play-off victory. He is also the man with the ability to break lines and offload like few others in his position.
“We know we’ll have to be at our best to get the result we want on Friday night,” said the Fiji head coach, John McKee, “[But] if we’re at our best we know we can challenge them.” One of the players that will be helping them do said challenging will be Vereniki Goneva. The outside centre has put in some serious performances (and tries) for Leicester over the last few seasons and, like his centre parter Gabiriele Lovobalavu, should be someone for Stuart Lancaster to worry about. Oh yeah, and there is also the case of the 19st, 6ft5, goal-kicking, forward-bashing winger, Nemani Nadolo, to deal with. As well as all this, Fiji have form with upsets, as Wales will know only too well from the 2007 edition of this tournament.
England, of course, expects. This is a home tournament, after all, and three times the trophy has been lifted by the hosts. And we know the team are feeling confident. Tom Ward said so. “There are some great teams out there and I can’t promise you success but all I can say is we’ve left no stone unturned in terms of our preparation. I feel prepared and I hope the lessons learned from our Six Nations campaigns will stand us in good stead.” But where is that confidence coming from? A couple of warm-up wins over Ireland and France? Remember this is the team that went to New Zealand and lost all three tests just last year and this is a country that has only won one Six Nations title since they won the World Cup in 2003. Finally, this is a team that is dangerously underweight in the cap department – only James Haskell has reached the 60 caps mark; compare that with 7 players with 60+ caps for Australia and Ireland and 10 for the All Blacks and South Africa.
Saying all that, there are some bright sparks of hope for Lancaster and England. They have a good record at home, having won their last seven matches at Twickenham, a stat which indicates just how comfortable they are in these environs. They also have Geoff Parling who is a reliable force at the line-out and the underrated and exciting talents of Anthony Watson and Jonny May on either wing. But the key man is almost certainly the diminutive George Ford. Small he may be but he a skilled player who has proven he can control games. If England are to go anywhere other than an embarrassing group exit, Ford is going to have to perform at his peak.
Can he do that? Can England win? And can we all stay awake for those 20 minutes of the opening ceremony? We are about to find out. Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the 2015 Rugby World Cup.
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