Mellsblue wrote: ↑Tue Feb 06, 2024 9:32 pm
I miss Digby
Barred - too political.
Minute 61: We fail to scrum for most of the minute, but the ref gives an Italy free-kick for something that the camera angle is too artsy to bother showing us. They go quick and run a hard line in midfield, only to be absolutely stopped and dumped by Dingwall. Great tackle, made better by him picking himself up and making the next tackle as well. #bouncetime
Minute 62: England are up and aggressive in defence and it's rattling Italy. A few missed tackles which need to be amended, but we're swarming and the attack only lasts a few phases before a knock-on at the base gives an England scrum. Dingwall made three tackles in under 30 seconds.
Minute 63: Weird move this. England have secure ball from the back of a scrum, Earl pops to Care who is set up to go down the blind and England appear to have an overlap with Ford and Freeman angling to go that way. However Care then swings the ball open to Slade, attempting to catch Italy overfolding. They haven't really bought into it though, which means that if Care looked up and changed his big pass into a big dummy, we'd be 3-on-1 down the right.
Despite that, we've got a decent attacking line on the left, with Slade standing at 10, the long pass cutting out the tight defence, and room to attack into, but Slade decides he doesn't fancy a 4-on-3 and instead kicks long, landing the ball comfortably in the Italian 14's arms. Just very average all the way around.
The chase is good though, so Pani kicks the ball back to Slade, who puts up a high ball that he chases and melts the catcher again. It *is* a great chase, but we've not got the ball back and I'm still upset about us just giving away that lovely possession off the scrum a second ago.
Minute 64: Italy optimistically go wide on the edge of their 22 - they do have width and England are narrow, but we come flying up and cut them off so they have to come inside. Marler's possibly a bit lucky no-one looks at a replay of his tackle as it looks a bit head contacty, but probably only a yellow. Varney decides discretion is the better part of valour and cowardice is the better part of discretion and sets a caterpillar and kick for a good touch by the halfway.
Minute 65: Short lineout and a very good, tight maul, with players disengaging and reengaging every time Italy try and swing around to the wrong side. Good technique. Care puts up a box-kick and it doesn't look like a great use of possession, but it's high and the chase is good and Italy make a mess of it so we've got the ball back and I'll give him that it's a good result. We zigzag left and right with forward carries and Care earns his paycheque with some pantomime-level outrage at an Italian being "in his way" on the wrong side. It's a definite penalty, but Care makes absolutely certain that the ref gives it to us.
Ford uses the advantage to put in a chip and it's a good decision but a touch long - 50cm shorter and Slade's taking that on the full and sending someone under the posts. As it is, the ball bounces for a flailing Italian foot to kick it away. We do recycle and Ford chucks a massive wide pass out to Daly, who has a one-on-one with Pani with about 10m run-up and 25m of width to play with. Daly has a look... and decides he doesn't fancy his chances. He's probably right - Pani's not slow and he's done a decent job of cutting down the space, but you feel like Feyi-Waboso or Freeman would've gone for that (or hells, May absolutely would've done, even now). They might not have made it, but they'd've felt confident backing themselves there and it's disappointing that Daly doesn't.
As it is, he steps inside, gets swallowed up by the cover, and the referee comes back for the penalty.
