Following England’s fully deserved 33-19 victory against the All Blacks at Allianz Stadium, Twickenham, here’s our key winners and losers from the Autumn Nations Series fixture in London.
Winners
George Ford
You wouldn’t have guessed at the top of the year that the fly-half would become so invaluable to the on-pitch England set-up.
With Fin Smith’s fledgling career taking off and booking him a British and Irish Lions tour, Ford was set to be consigned to the shadows. But something triggered on the summer tour to Argentina and he has superbly taken that authority into this Autumn Nations Series.
He began against the All Blacks with a dud kick that was easily defended behind the line, but he imperiously grew into the contest after England fell a dozen points down.
His assist pass for the Ollie Lawrence try was sweet, and the two drop goals he fired over in rapid succession were a reminder of the magic in Marseille when he smothered Argentina with that famed 2023 Rugby World Cup hat-trick.
Then, in the second half, he was coolness personified, with excitement rising around him. Look at how he immediately overcame the disappointment of seeing his 50th-minute try scrubbed out due to a Ben Earl knock on by drilling the 50:22 kick five minutes later that secured the lineout for the Fraser Dingwall try.
It was apt that his super performance was capped by the 75th-minute penalty that restored England’s two-score lead, guaranteeing them their 10th Test match win on the bounce before Tom Roebuck’s try pushed the margin out to a generous proportion.
Let’s have no arguments; English fans must fully respect what Ford brilliantly did for his team.