With two minutes left in the game, France are down a point and Thomas Ramos is standing over the ball on the midfield line, poised to deliver the final turning point in this topsy-turvy championship. England had just scored to regain the lead in a match they had already lost, won and lost again. They did this with a fine try from a formation inside the France 22. Danny Care to Manu Tuilagi, snap, Care to Maro Itoje, crackle and Care to Tommy Freeman, pop. He slid over the try line in the right-hand corner and for three minutes they were about to score a famous victory. But Ramos’ kick pulled him back again.
It was such a match. It was swaying wildly from side to side in the night wind. England were suddenly 13 points behind, and the next moment they were eight points ahead again. It was sloppy, enthusiastic and exhausted, like a game played in the hallways on the last day of the term. Ireland had already won the title by beating Scotland in Dublin in the afternoon. But with everyone on the field shattered by the end of the championship, they wreaked merry havoc in Lyon, perhaps thinking it would be months before they got another chance, even though there wasn’t much to gain by doing so. to go again.
Relating to: Ramos’ late penalty gives France victory over England in seven-try thriller
Here were France, bursting across the field with one of their stunning free-kick attempts after François Cros had stolen George Martin’s line-up. Cros beached the ball like a bear catching a salmon, and one, two, three passes later Gaël Fickou was running downfield, slipping through the wide gap left by Henry Slade in the English line. He passed the ball back to Léo Barré, who passed not one but two dummies to Louis Bielle-Biarrey outside and then passed the ball the other way to Nolann Le Garrec. Leave the tackle aside, England barely managed to get a touch between them.
And here Ollie Lawrence, caught behind another line-up, breaks through the gap in the France midfield to pull one back. Lawrence also secured England’s second just after half-time. In those 10 minutes, England played the same effervescent game they had played against Ireland at Twickenham the week before. They moved the ball quickly and shot through gaps as the France defense was still trying to close them down. Ben Earl was virtually unstoppable, cutting through the midfield like a hot knife through the cold Beurre d’Isigny block. He set up another for Marcus Smith three minutes later.
While everything was great, the most notable thing about the game they were playing during this time was what you couldn’t see. For years, England have been a team that celebrates every little victory on the pitch; They treated turnovers as decisive tries and penalties as tournament-winning points. But this time England did not even stop to congratulate Lawrence or Smith. Instead, the players turned on their heel and walked back the way they came, ready to start over. It was a sign of serious intent and further evidence that Steve Borthwick’s somber demeanor was starting to affect them.
I wish they could play like this for 80 minutes, or even an hour. But they didn’t have it this week. Their lineout, a finely tuned machine against the Irish, stalled and stuttered, their strikes went nowhere and again there were a few too many handling errors and a few too many holes when on the ball. He was on the defensive line when one or the other of them rushed after the bullfighter like a bull. It was a big risk to blitz against a team that used half the lead like the French side did. Guys who act like Fickou don’t need a second invitation to make a fool of you.
Relating to: France 33-31 England: Lyon’s Six Nations player ratings
Despite all this, there is no doubt that England are in much better shape than they were at the start of the tournament. For the first time in a long time, they feel like they’re on the rise again. There’s a serious pack in Earl, Itoje, Martin and Ollie Chessum (Irish sportswriter Con Houlihan used to say there should be a redhead in every team, and England have a good one too). Lawrence, Smith, Freeman and Immanuel Feyi‑Waboso, who missed this game with a concussion, also have talent, speed and backline strength. This time next year they will be back and better.
By then this team will be missing some, Manu Tuilagi and most likely Danny Care. It was good to watch the pair, who have been there so often for England over the last decade, play their last few games together.
It was also nice to watch Lawrence and Alex Mitchell work and think England were finally ready to get by without both of them.