England left wanting again, as Australia come up victorious at the death
A week on from last week’s late defeat at the hands of All Blacks, England fall at the final hurdle again, with Max Jorgensen delivering the killer blow in the 83rd minute.
A 37-42 defeat for Steve Borthwick’s England side leaves them still pining after that first victory in this years Autumn Nations series, and with the World Champion Springboks up next, it’s hard to feel inspired as a fan. Despite the two losses on the bounce, what are the key takeaways from Saturday’s game?
England flew out of the blocks and looked to hurt Australia from the first minute, utilising the exciting attacking firepower the team has been blessed with, with the likes of Marcus Smith pulling the strings alongside second receiver Henry Slade. Ollie Lawrence made an early line break and shipped it to Chandler Cunningham-South, who dotted down in the corner for the score with only five minutes on the clock. The attacking flurry didn’t stop there, as the young Harlequins lock crossed the try line again, scoring his second of the game after just over 10 minutes played.
The game continued at an electrifying pace, with Marcus Smith slotting a penalty in the 17th minute to give England a healthy 15-3 lead over the Wallabies. Australia wouldn’t be denied however, as Tom Wright touched down in the corner and stepped up to nail the touchline conversion, bringing the score to 15-10. Only 4 minutes later, the away side would breach England’s defence once more, with Harry Wilson scoring following a quick snipe, step, and one handed offload from Tate McDermot to put his compatriot in. They topped up their lead with a successful penalty just before the half, as they left the field two points ahead at 18-20.
It was a cagey start to the second half, but Australia picked up where they left off, with Jeremy Williams running in a try in the 50th minute. The Australian lead was supplemented two minutes later with a successful penalty kick, as they opened up a 10 point lead to make the score 18-28.
England weren’t going down without a fight however, as Marcus Smith conjured up a brilliant try, grubbering the ball through for Ollie Sleighthome to score in the corner. Just nine minutes later, last season’s Gallagher Premiership top scorer would cross the line again, scoring his second of the day. Smith slotted the extras to bring the score to 30-28, as England re-established their lead with just over 10 minutes left to play.
Andrew Kellaway wiped the smiles off the English supporters faces however, with a try in the 74th minute. The England team were fuelled by a rapturous rendition of Sing Low from the Allianz faithful, and used their new found energy to all but seal the victory, as Maro Itoje scored in the 78th minute, bringing the score to 37-35 after Marcus Smith nailed the conversion.
It was not the fairytale ending for England however, as Max Jorgensen sped over in the corner with the clock in the red to deliver a crushing blow that would see England fall short for the second home game in a row. Final score: England 37-42 Australia.
