'No excuses': England look to power past Aussie rivals

For England, Australia lurk like a snake in the Outback.

- HARRY LATHAM-COYLE

Many an unfortunate trekker has learnt the hard way about taking one's eye off the ball: a moment of complacency, an unchecked boot, pain aplenty or worse.

Test rugby’s bite can be just as deadly. Steve Borthwick’s side are already counting the cost of a year of missed opportunities, their proclamations of progress somewhat evident but harder to believe as the failings recur. In each of their last three outings, England were in control against New Zealand at some point in the second half only to let the opportunity slip. The figures are stark – three points in an aggregate hour across the final quarters of each encounter – and even if each has had its own characteristics, there is recognition in the ranks that it is time to step up.

“We can’t be making excuses. As players we have to step up and be more consistent,” flanker Tom Curry said this week, a sometimes circuitous talker entirely forthright. We won’t make promises, but we’ve not been good enough. In the last quarter we as players definitely have to stand up. It’s about the full 80 minutes.

“We obviously made mistakes and we’ve recognised that. There’s stuff we were doing in the last quarter that we’re not doing in the first 60. Discipline-wise, we let ourselves down. At 40 minutes it was one penalty conceded, two penalties at 60 minutes and then at 80 minutes it had built up (to seven in total). There’s nothing coming externally that we haven’t heard. We’ve had all the right messages from the coaches. We as players need to step up. There are no excuses.”