MARO THE SAME

MARO ITOJE and England’s new dawn proved a false one on another dark day in Dublin for the Red Roses.

- by ADAM HATHAWAY

Three bits of magic from Ireland wing James Lowe proved the difference between the two sides as England again lost a game they could have won.

The result was harsh on Itoje, who had an immense game in his first as skipper, and England will be kicking themselves all the way home. This was a chance missed.

Itoje said: “I thought the first half was fantastic and we did everything we wanted to do.

“The second half we lost the territory a little bit and we struggled to get out.

“We just need to control the territory better and be more consistent.”

Defensively, England came to the party until the final quarter when Lowe ran riot to win the game.

But Steve Borthwick’s men did escape with a bonus point thanks to late scores from Tom Curry and Tommy Freeman – but they could have had more.