England find long-awaited answer to stagger France

Just when you thought you were out, this England team pull you back in.

- HARRY LATHAM-COYLE

On a day where the Smiths took centre stage, England’s charming men at last achieved the victory they have long sought. Seven times this likeable side had toiled to no avail against toptier opposition over the last year, seven times coming close but not close enough. But no longer. This was a win that defied prematch logic and in-match feel, the full-time whistle greeted by an outpouring of emotion befitting a win of some magnitude.

One wonders how the Twickenham crowd will cope when they finally see a straightforward Six Nations contest. This was brilliant and baffling in just about equal measure, far from ideal conditions somehow managing to enrich rather than ruin what appeared a one-sided fixture on paper. An error-prone France appeared to have conjured enough magic to win the game thrice, only for England – yes, this England – to land an improbable knockout blow.

And so, Steve Borthwick’s side stay alive in this Six Nations. This is far from a result to cure all ills but in Fin Smith, Borthwick has surely found his fly-half for present and future. Handed a first start here, in this fixture, the 22-year-old rose to the occasion, outshining the displaced Marcus Smith – scratchy at full-back – by a distance.

It was the Northampton playmaker who kicked the winning goal and gave the winning pass, Elliot Daly showing the expertise and excellence that comes with experience to arrive in a timely manner on his shoulder. Victory by a point; how England have had to wait to come out on the right side of a proper Twickenham thriller.

It had been a thoroughly miserable afternoon, the rain that tumbled of the kind to soak through an overgarment and sticky the shirt. The conditions dictated the contest, the handling errors, and skidding kicks, frequent as the two sides felt their way into the fixture.