RBS Six Nations 2012: England Player Ratings v Scotland

– February 6, 2012

15. Ben Foden – 6

Made one early error under the high ball, but generally Foden was solid. Failed to really make an impact when attacking trying to get around the outside of the tackler, but overall a good performance.

14. Chris Ashton – 6

Ashton was very much part of England’s Plan A, i.e. the one with width and ambition. When this clearly wasn’t working, and England moved on to the more direct Plan B, he was involved far less, but he made his share of tackles.

13. Brad Barritt – 8

Excellent. Countless important tackles in midfield, whilst Barritt may have not had much of a chance to cause some damage in attack, his work rate was exceptional.

12. Owen Farrell – 7

There will perhaps be no greater test of Farrell’s character than after his first shot at goal in Test rugby sailed wide. But he focused and whilst again not showing much in attack, produced a solid debut.

11. David Strettle – 7

Stopped from scoring a try thanks down to good work from David Denton after Charlie Hodgson’s cross-field kick. Enjoyed a good comeback to the international game, doing enough to start against Italy.

10. Charlie Hodgson – 8

An 8 might seem excessive, but Hodgson’s first half defence was excellent. With 120 seconds gone of the second half, he had scored the game’s only try, persevering to charge down Dan Parks’ clearance.

9. Ben Youngs – 6

Suffered because of the pack’s lack of control at the breakdown, slowing down his delivery. A couple of wayward kicks didn’t help, but you cannot fault his determination.

1. Alex Corbisiero – 7

Seemed to struggle early on in the scrum up against Euan Murray, but worked hard in the loose, and also secured a crucial turnover late on when Scotland were once more applying the pressure.

2. Dylan Hartley – 6

Had a tough afternoon throwing into the lineout with Richie Gray in front of him, but battled hard as always. Far and away England’s best option at hooker.

3. Dan Cole – 7

11 tackles and a couple of good runs, Cole is more versatile than perhaps people give him credit for.

4. Mouritz Botha – 8

Another Saracen who really impressed, Botha was a physical beast, more than compensating for the loss of Courtney Lawes. Looked very much at home in Test rugby.

5. Tom Palmer – 7

Failed to dominate the lineout under pressure from Gray and Jim Hamilton, but also put in the joint highest number of tackles with 13, equal with Brad Barritt.

6. Tom Croft – 6

One excellent break aside, this was not Croft’s best match. When a fully fit Tom Wood returns, moving Robshaw to the blindside and leaving Croft on the bench could well be an option.

7. Chris Robshaw – 7

England’s new captain had lost his shirt by the half hour mark, leading by example and putting his body on the line. Appeared to leave everything on the pitch, and looked like a player who had played many more than just the one Test match.

8. Phil Dowson – 5

The one real area of concern. Dowson is an excellent blindside flanker but as a number eight he couldn’t handle the physicality. Ben Morgan made more of an impact when he came on, and should probably start against Italy.

Replacements:

Morgan made a noteworthy cameo off the bench, doing enough to suggest he should start next week. Jordan Turner-Hall and Geoff Parling also did well.