It was ecstasy for England as they secured a 19-7 victory over tournament favourites New Zealand to reach the World Cup final.
It was the biggest game of their lives for most of these England players as they looked to secure their first victory over the All Blacks in World Cup history, and they came out in explosive fashion.
It took just one minute for England to get on the try sheet with powerhouse Manu Tuilagi gaining the try. It came from a delicious offload from prop forward Kyle Sinckler, and was followed up by an easy Owen Farrell conversion gave England the 7-0 lead.
England’s tactics were worked a treat, and their dominance in lineouts and scrums didn’t allow New Zealand to make use of their trademark passing game.
The constant pressure paid off in minute 26 when Sinckler executed another sharp offload to give flanker Sam Underhill try number two. However, it was controversially disallowed for obstruction seconds later.
At 7-0 it was proving to be an utterly dominant display from the underdogs, and Beauden Barrett looked under constant pressure with ball in hand for the all blacks. An unfamiliar sight to say the least.
It looked worrying for England in the 28th minutes in as Owen Farrell looked to have injured his leg, but he went on to see the game out, conceding kicking duties to George Ford.
New Zealand began to pose a slight threat late in the half, but a tenacious England defence stayed unflustered. England gained a massive boost in the 39th minute as George Ford converted a penalty to take England in 10-0 up at the half.
Elliot Daly looked to make use of his mammoth kicking abilities in the 41st minute with a 54-meter penalty, but it was narrowly missed.
England came out emphatically and it paid off with a 44-minute penalty which led to a brilliant try from the maul. Again, it was disallowed from a forward pass in the maul. However, The Roses didn’t let the two disallowed tries take the wind out of the their sails.
Instead, England used these important moments to drive them on. A successful George Ford penalty in the 49th minute gave England a 13-point advantage.
New Zealand gained a try out of nothing with a poor England lineout giving Ardie Savea New Zealand their first try at the 60-minute mark (13-7).
Despite this crushing try from New Zealand England were not to be fazed. They came back with an attack of their own leading to a successful penalty from George ford. 16-7 to England the 62-minute mark it was well and truly game on.
A controversial moment in the 64th minute, as Sam Whitelock seemed to strike Owen Farrell in the face off the ball. England gained a penalty but surprisingly no further disciplinary action was taken. A 44m penalty went straight through the posts for George Ford, putting England 19-7 up with 12 minutes to play.
England gained a penalty in the 76th minute which is missed by Ford but no matter as minutes later England were able to see out the game and make it to their first final in 12 years. They will face the winner of South Africa or Wales in tomorrow’s semi-final next Saturday.
Photo by Richard Allport under creative commons licence
