England stuttered in the early exchanges of their mid-season international against France, before recovering to secure a comfortable 40-8 win. Jack Welsby and Harry Smith were particularly impressive in wrestling control of the game back from a pumped-up French side.
England’s forward pack struggled to compete with the French pack in the opening exchanges, however, the introduction of Tyler Dupree, Oliver Wilson and James Harrison from the bench allowed England to build a platform to turn the game on its head with three tries in six first-half minutes.
The second half was a scrappier affair as both sides struggled to keep hold of the ball. However, England will be particularly pleased with their defensive effort after the break to keep France scoreless. Second-half tries from Matty Nicholson, George Williams and Tom Johnstone gave England plenty of breathing space.
Here are our player ratings for England’s win in France.
QUIZ: Can you name these 10 English Internationals?
England Player Ratings: St Helens man stars
Credit: Imago Images
Jack Welsby – 9
England’s stand-out performer and instrumental in lifting the side when France went 8-0 up in the opening stages. Scored England’s first try, having started the move with a break down the short side. Welsby was also involved in the build-up for the second try and gave England a good field position on several occasions with strong runs. Scored another in the second half after good work from Ben Currie. Welsby was at the heart of everything good that England did in a scrappy performance.
Tom Johnstone – 7
Looked comfortable in defence and carried the ball strongly away from his own line. Produced a spectacular run to beat six French defenders before looping a spectacular cross-field pass to Harry Newman in the build-up to Handley’s second try. Scored two tries of his own, with the first coming in the 31st minute after a good pass from Williams, and the second with the last play of the game. Looks very much at home at international level and his display will keep him in Shaun Wane’s thoughts when Dom Young comes into the squad.
Sam Wood – 6
Did nothing wrong on his international debut and looked solid without being spectacular. Wood’s task was made easier by facing rookie centre, Enzo Griffier, who showed his inexperience at times and rarely threatened England in attack. Judgement on Wood Should be reserved for sterner tests against stronger opposition, although Wood will likely lose his place when England’s NRL-based players become available.
Harry Newman – 7
Harry Newman produced a strong performance to advance his chances of remaining in the England side when they face Samoa later in the season. Newman was unselfish in attack, laying on two tries for winger, Ash Handley, when he could have gone for the line himself. His partnership with second-rower, Matty Nicholson, did not always look coherent, although this is understandable, given the lack of playing time they have together.
Ash Handley – 7Â
France kicked behind Handley to score their early try, however, the winger recovered to produce an impressive performance. Scored two first half tries, bumping off French full-back, Mourgue, to score the first and taking in a pass from Leeds team-mate, Newman, to score his second in the right-hand corner. Now has five tries in two appearances for England, however, both his appearances have come against France. Another who Wane will be keen to see against tougher opposition.
Harry Smith – 8Â
Harry Smith was excellent and played a key role in England overturning France’s early stranglehold on the game. Two kicks from hand early in the first half gave England precious field position when France were well on top and helped to swing the game in his side’s favour. His kicking from hand and passing were virtually flawless all night and he was involved in the build up to several England tries. The only blemish on his performance was his kicking from the tee, which remains a work in progress. Overall an excellent performance.
George Williams – 7
George Williams grew into the game to produce a good performance for England, however, others shone brighter than the captain. He took a while to find his feet in the game, as England started on the back foot. But Williams is always capable of producing moments of magic and he did than in finding a lovely final pass to put Johnstone in to score in the first half. Scored a try of his own in the second half, although Mikey Lewis produced the magic on that occasion. Lewis’ inspired cameo from the bench keeps the pressure on Williams to keep producing.
Credit: Imago Images
Luke Thompson – 5
England’s forward pack were outmuscled by France in the opening exchanges and improved once Thompson and Lees were replaced midway through the first half. Thompson grew into the game as France’s forward pack tired. Was guilty of a handling error midway through the first half which gave France field position to kick their penalty. Is capable of better and will come back.
Brad O’Neill – 6
Another player who was solid if not spectacular, but Lewis’ introduction in place of O’Neill highlighted some of the qualities O’Neill needs to work on. O’Neill was strong in defence and his distribution from dummy half is always reliable, however, he lacked a spark to put France on the back foot regularly. Guilty of one particularly bad knock-on early in the second half. A solid debut nonetheless.
Matty Lees – 5
Like front row partner, Thompson, was over-powered by France’s intensity in the opening exchanges, as England spent most of the first 20 minutes on the back foot. Improved in his second spell when the game was already won, but will have been hoping to do more to stake a claim to be a mainstay of England’s starting side.
Ben Currie – 8
A candidate for man of the match, as he produced an error free display in an otherwise scrappy encounter. Produced one moment of brilliance as he dummied his way through the French line before releasing Welsby to score his second of the night.
Matty Nicholson – 6
Suffered from a difficult start to the game, knocking the ball on in the opening exchanges to give France the field position to score their early try. Struggled to click with Newman at times, but grew into the game and capped his debut with a try thanks to a neat kick from Harry Smith. Will have a long future in an England shirt.
Elliot Minchella – 7
Combative performance from the Hull KR capain which improved as the game went on. Showed his handling skills when linking up with Smith and Williams in the build up to Tom Johnstone’s try in the 31st minute. Will be pleased with his all round performance and combined well with Lewis once he was introduced from the bench.
Interchanges:
Mikey Lewis – 8Â
Lifted England when introduced from the bench and looked a constant threat when picking up the ball and running from dummy half. Lewis is a nightmare for tired defences and produced a sublime piece of skill to break the French line and release Williams to score. England have to find a way to get him in the side.
Credit: Imago Images
James Harrison – 7
Produced a couple of handling errors, however, his introduction was instrumental in helping England turn the game around. Carried the ball hard and ate up metres, whilst being solid in defence. Should be pleased with his outing.
Tyler Dupree – 7
Looks at home in an England shirt and, like Harrison, made a real difference off the bench. Carried the ball hard and was aggressive in defence as usual. Another who made a couple of unforced errors which is an area for improvement.
Oliver Wilson – 6
Wilson made a good impact off the bench and helped England keep their momentum once they had regained control of the game. His late hit on Mourgue gave France an unnecessary penalty and he needs to work on balancing aggression with control.
