Pollock Proves The Key Before England Cavalry Seal Victory Over Australia

There will beryllium higher octane games than this 1 successful nan coming weeks but for England nan superior nonsubjective has been safely ticked off. An eighth successive Test triumph is successful nan container and Steve Borthwick’s squad person besides gone 1 amended than nan corresponding fixture past twelvemonth erstwhile nan Wallabies took nan spoils successful nan dying moments.

While this brushwood was not astir arsenic thrilling, nan last scoreline – sparkling brightly connected nan large surface successful nan gathering evening gloom – was what really counted for Borthwick and his players. Defeat to a weakened Wallaby broadside would person prompted immoderate uncomfortable questions and formed a nagging protector complete nan remainder of their November schedule.

And conscionable erstwhile England fans were starting to wonderment if a precocious Halloween scary show mightiness yet materialise, up popped a man pinch a instrumentality up his sleeve. Henry Pollock had only been connected nan section 7 minutes erstwhile he brilliantly scooped up a pat down from nan high-flying Tom Roebuck and accelerated distant to people nan game’s defining effort from 30 metres out.

Pollock, still only 20, looks destined to people plentifulness much tries connected this celebrated aged agelong of writer and intelligibly relishes nan large occasion. Ben Earl besides scored a crisp first-half effort pinch Alex Mitchell and Luke Cowan-Dickie crossing successful nan last quarter, but for nan first hr this was not a title to nonstop excessively galore location fans skipping backmost down to Twickenham station.

Australia vanished a clear 2nd champion successful astir departments and nan presence of a boatload of English replacements made life moreover harder successful nan 2nd half. Stronger opponents mightiness conscionable person made England sweat for longer but nan show of Lewis Moody, precocious diagnosed pinch centrifugal neurone disease, delivering nan lucifer shot was a reminder to each that specified debates are strictly relative.

On a grey but comparatively mild day nan first mobility was whether England, having talked nan talk successful nan buildup, could besides locomotion nan walk. And whether nan pre-match muttering astir nan legality of immoderate of Australia’s breakdown angles would person a important effect connected nan decision-making of nan Georgian referee Nika Amashukeli.

The pea successful Amashukeli’s whistle surely received a bully early work-out but, ironically, it was England who were pinged first for coming successful from nan side. The inevitable flaw pinch flagging up expected areas of interest to nan lucifer officials successful beforehand is that nan other scrutiny useful some ways.

And, successful truth, nan main attraction of some sides’ liking successful nan opening 40 minutes was nan aerial contest. Joseph-Aukuso Suallii tin bargain consequence from nan higher branches of immoderate character and enjoyed immoderate early joyousness successful disrupting nan location catchers. It was unexpected, then, erstwhile Roebuck roseate supra nan singular Australian jock to poach a shot which resulted successful Sam Underhill sending Earl connected a 40-metre sprint to nan line.

At 10-0 up nan onus was connected Australia to find immoderate benignant of swift response. It was not proving easy and, speech from a superb clearance footwear down nan sideline from their skipper Harry Wilson location was precious small to promote them. Earl came wrong a whisker of scoring his 2nd only to beryllium held up complete nan statement and each nan snappier attacking was coming from nan hosts.

It was a sizeable bonus, then, erstwhile Fraser Dingwall saw his attempted wide walk to Freddie Steward intercepted by Harry Potter pinch different imaginable English scoring opportunity beckoning. Potter swooped successful to declare nan aureate snitch and surged 75 metres downfield to complete a effort that will person brought a wry grin to nan look of his English-born father.

Out of obscurity it was a title again, albeit a reasonably error-strewn one. Tane Edmed, nan visiting fly-half, almost committed nan howler of nan play pinch a botched goalline drop-out conscionable earlier nan interval but nan Wallabies still survived to nan break without conceding immoderate further ground.

Lewis Moody, who revealed that he had been diagnosed pinch centrifugal neurone disease, presents nan lucifer shot to nan referee. Photograph: Dan Mullan/RFU/The RFU Collection/Getty Images

The adjacent situation was to find a measurement to antagonistic what they knew would beryllium coming next. England had deliberately stacked their chair pinch a position to tightening nan second-half screw while nan Wallabies, without nan mixed talents of nan unavailable Will Skelton, Len Ikitau, Tom Hooper and James O’Connor, did not person nan aforesaid luxury.

The cavalry duly arrived pinch half an hr near and soon made their beingness felt, pinch nan monolithic Wallaby prop Taniela Tupou having already been whistled ashore. Pollock is not nan biggest of back-rowers but he already has an uncanny knack of imposing himself connected games and did truthful again by burning disconnected nan Wallaby full-back Andrew Kellaway.

Finally England could activity easy and nan action became progressively 1 sided. First Mitchell sniped astir nan fringes to people contempt suggestions of a imaginable knock-on moments earlier and then, pinch nan Wallabies battalion successful superior strife, Cowan-Dickie crowned his 50th Test quality from adjacent range. First autumn humor to England but sterner challenges await.