1 Francis fortunate to get away with high early hit on Hooley
Piers Francis was understandably fired up for his first, and possibly only, start of this World Cup but, given all that is swirling around the standard of officiating when it comes to high tackles, his hit on Will Hooley five seconds into the match, was remarkably absent-minded. Francis got away with it at the time – equally remarkable was that it was not a penalty, nor reviewed to the TMO – and, although it was not as bad as that of the USA’s John Quill, which led to the first red card of the tournament, it is likely the citing commissioner will take a close look given the contact made with Hooley’s head.
Had the referee, Nic Berry – whose own career was ended due to concussion – felt compelled to act given World Rugby’s public criticism of officials, England would have had a far more trying evening here. Francis, it must be said, performed well thereafter but Eddie Jones had warned his players in no uncertain terms beforehand not to try too hard to make an impact. It is unlikely, then, that Jones would have been too impressed.
2 Ford’s control showed he is the right fly-half to face Argentina
If one is looking to glean who might have impressed sufficiently to win a place in the side to face Argentina on Saturday week, look no further than George Ford. It may seem obvious, given he started against Tonga as well, but it is not so long ago that Owen Farrell was installed as Eddie Jones’s No 1 fly-half. Henry Slade is also expected to be fit to face Argentina, so Jones will probably consider reverting to Farrell in the No 10 jersey.
He should resist, however. Ford enjoyed somewhat of an armchair ride given the dominance of the England pack but the fly-half was in total control, exploiting the front-foot ball his eight provided him with. Ford and Owen Farrell were both guilty of kicking aimlessly against Tonga but the former was far more accurate against the USA. There was an invention to it as well and one lovely outside-of-the-boot flick eventually led to his opening try and a delightful shimmy to put the excellent Lewis Ludlam away.
3 Humidity not always at the root of England’s handling errors in attack
The handling errors were not eradicated nor were the discipline problems in the opening 20 minutes but this was a more emphatic performance from England, based around their utterly dominant pack and again a heavy reliance on their kicking game. And, bearing in mind that Maro Itoje, Courtney Lawes, Sam Underhill and Kyle Sinckler were all absent from the starting eight, it was some statement from England’s forwards.
They will face harder examinations to come but the driving maul was a weapon the USA had no answer to. Defensively England look rock solid too, but the attack coach, Scott Wisemantel, may be a little displeased because England were at times wasteful in the opening 50 minutes – Jonathan Joseph’s failure to find Joe Cokanasiga at the very end of the first half springs to mind – and the extreme humidity can only partially mitigate against 18 handling errors. Cokanasiga alone made three of those and, though he scored two tries, it is hard to see him displacing Jonny May as England move through the gears against Argentina and then France.
4 Shambolic finale certain to infuriate defence coach Mitchell
Like the golfer who makes 17 straight birdies, pars the last and walks off the course furious with himself, England were left with a decidedly sour taste in the mouth after shipping their first try in three matches with the clock in the red. They chose not to kick the ball out to bring an end to the match after the unmistakable gong that has been introduced to this tournament. Yet while that in itself is perfectly fine, the manner in which chaos ensued thereafter is surely not in the eyes of their defence coach, John Mitchell.
He would have every right to be livid at the shambolic nature of Bryce Campbell’s try, all the more so because he coached the USA between 2016 and 2017. It did not have any bearing on the match and it may seem minor but it was sloppy and was a glimpse of what can happen when this England side go off script.
5 USA’s shortcomings show need for tier-one nations to visit
Gary Gold may have struck a defeatist tone when the USA coach declared on the eve of the match that England had no discernible weaknesses but on the night it must be said his side were poor, albeit comprehensively overpowered by a side with more than enough resources to make light of the four-day turnaround. Gold also urged tier-one nations to tour tier-two countries in July on a more regular basis in order to improve their fortunes.
He gets his wish in 2021 when an England squad without their British & Irish Lions will play in the USA and the hope must be that more countries follow suit. There is an eagerness within rugby’s corridors of power to try to break the American market and it would be no surprise at all to see the 2027 or perhaps more likely the 2031 World Cup staged there. On the field there is plenty of work to do first, however.
