As the saying goes; a win is a win.
That statement becomes even more important when you apply it to a Rugby World Cup and even more so when you put it into context with the cards England have been dealt.
With Wales just around the corner and Australia still to come, last night’s bonus point victory over Fiji was crucial for Stuart Lancaster’s men.
After the match, the England coach said: “At the start if you had offered us four tries and a bonus point I would have absolutely taken that.”
It certainly wasn’t a clean-cut and polished performance from the hosts - who controlled the opening quarter - but they did what they had to do and didn’t let the occasion get to them.
At times though, the England crowd were reduced from belting out ‘Swing Low, Sweet Chariot’ to murmurs and anxiousness as Fiji grew in confidence as the game went on. There is still plenty for England to improve on.
Here are a few things we learnt about England in last night’s World Cup opener.
Mike Brown
This is the perfect place to start. Mike Brown was superb. 191 metres, 6 clean breaks, and 11 defenders beaten and of course the two tries.
He started slowly, but then scored a hard earned try in the first half before being the catalyst England so desperately needed when they were in a lull. He continually kept coming back at Fiji and his all round play for his second try was brilliant.
He, along with Anthony Watson and Jonny May, could be the vital cutting edge which England need as the tournament goes on.
Impact from the bench
There was a section of Fiji supporters just behind the Press Box last night at Twickenham. Mid-way through the second-half they tried – on numerous occasions – to start a Mexican Wave and ultimately failed. It was that sort of game at that point.
However, Lancaster decided changes were needed and they spiced up the contest. Joe Lauchbury managed to contain the huge presence of Nemani Nadolo just minutes after coming on whist Sam Burgess, Billy Vunipola and Owen Farrell all changed the dynamic of England’s second half performance.
Forwards laying down the foundations
Over the last year, the majority of England’s tries have come from their flying backs. However, last night it was the turn of the forwards which showed the hosts’ try scoring methods are not all about speed and quick footwork.
The England forwards were at the heart of both the opening and final try of the night which was crucial as the slippery conditions seemed to be causing handling problems for both teams.
Host advantage
I know it always gets talked about, but actually experiencing it for the first time really does hammer home how important the backing of a nation really is.
From the beginning of the opening ceremony, the Twickenham crowd were in full voice as renditions of ‘Sweet Caroline’ and ‘Swing Low, Sweet Chariot’ rang around the stadium. The noise level continued to increase, but then dipped after 20 minutes or so.
But when the England side needed them most, the crowd urged them on and the volume picked up again when Mike Brown sparked his side into life. It was then deafening when Billy Vunipola touched down to secure the bonus point and let’s hope that sort of support continues throughout the tournament.
The breakdown and scrum
Before the match, one of England’s huge strengths which they had over Fiji was that they could use their forwards to dominant and be solid at the breakdown and at scrum time. However, this didn’t happen.
Fiji caused them problems. John McKee’s side were overwhelmed at times, but on the whole they really gave England cause for concern as they were winning turnovers and penalties to slow down England’s rhythm.
The scrum was also a real problem. Fiji’s Manasa Saulo was impressive whilst England’s inability to hook was exposed.
England must improve this aspect of their game for Wales and Australia otherwise they will be punished.
The Midfield
There are still questions marks over England’s centre combination and last night raised one or two more. Brad Barritt and Jonathan Joseph had played last than 80 minutes before yesterday’s match and it showed with some poor handling errors at times. It is still a work in progress, but this debate will rage on throughout the tournament.
Need to be more clinical in attack
It wasn’t just Barritt and Joseph who produced handling errors. There were a number of knock-ons across the field and rarely did we see the ball travel smoothly across the line - maybe due to the light drizzle over Twickenham last night. However, England seemed nervy and rusty so had to resort to using their power upfront which was emphasised by Billy Vunipola’s try at the death.