Fast Start Keeps England On Track

England will head into next week’s showdown with Ireland with two bonus-point victories in the bag, after coming through unscathed against Scotland.

- Adam Ellis

Jack van Poortvliet’s early opener ensured there would be no repeat of last week’s slow start against France, as England took a 19-5 lead into the half-time break.

A red card to flanker Lucas Brooke for a high tackle coupled with a sinbin to Sam Riley threatened to unsettle England, but they held their nerve to capture all five points.

“There were elements of frustration towards the end,” said England head coach Alan Dickens. “But two wins from two, five tries, and ten points in total, it has been a fantastic effort from the players.

“But at the end of the game we had given away 24 penalties, which is massive, and we had to deal with a couple of warnings and the yellow card. We did manage to deal with that well but it is something to work on.