Top takeaways from England's initial Rugby World Cup matches
After a 27-10 victory over Argentina and a score of 34-12 against Japan in Nice, the team’s performance marks a promising start to their overall campaign.
Let's take a closer look at some of the key moments from the matches and examine what lies ahead for England in the tournament.
England's performance: A promising start
The nail-biting performance of the English team against Argentina was nothing if not entertaining.
The victory proved to be hard-earned after skipper Owen Farrell’s suspension paved the way for Boffelli to bring Argentina into a 3-0 lead at the beginning of the game.
It was expected to be a close match, with England as very slight underdogs on most Rugby World Cup betting sites before the game took place on the 9th of September, 2023.
Despite a red card causing the loss of Tom Curry early on, England’s fly-half was able to bring the team much needed points with three drop-goals and six penalties.
This exceptional kicking performance from George Ford was instrumental for the team’s first tournament victory over Argentina.
The fledgling success proved to be a welcome relief for Borthwick after team injuries on the road to the Rugby World Cup left analysts favoring an Argentinian win.
Memorable match moments
England’s first tournament matchup against Argentina had it’s fair share of bone-crunching collisions which saw an early yellow card for Tom Curry turn red after a clash with Juan Cruz Mallia.
From the 28th minute it was clear that England was turning the game around with Ford scoring an impressive drop goal.
The English team’s improved rush defense came through and Itoje proved to be a key driving force and source of difficulty for the Pumas.
In the second half, Ford kept up the momentum for his team after scoring his fourth penalty of the night at the 59th minute of the match, delighting his English fans. Courtney Lawes also managed to earn a standing ovation from fans as he walked off the pitch after the game’s conclusion, despite earning some technical penalties early on.
The English team holds a modest winning streak after maintaining their perfect start to the 2023 Rugby World Cup with a messy but ultimately decisive victory over Japan in Nice.
England's first try of this matchup was scored by Lewis Ludlam, which initially seemed to set team on a path to victory before Japan fought back to put the score at 13-12 at the break.
The English players were able to rally well in the second half to eventually score four tries to secure a valuable bonus point.
George Ford earned his keep once again by contributing 14 points to the final score with two penalties and four conversions.
In the second half, all eyes were on Courtney Lawes for his involvement what may be the most memorable moment of the game.
The English captain ran up for an easy try after the team’s opponents, expecting to hear a whistle from the referee for a knock-on involving Joe Marler, stopped and watched.
What's next: England's future plans
In hindsight, England's opening victories against Argentina and Japan in the Rugby World Cup was a messy display of teamwork, luck and determination as what appears to be the two most challenging games of the Pool D are now over.
As England analyzes their opening match performance, it's clear there is room for improvement as they are likely to face either Australia, Wales or Fiji from Pool C in the quarter-finals if they advance as one of Pool D’s top two teams.
It remains to be seen whether they can build on these early wins and maintain this positive momentum for the knockouts and rest of the tournament.
