England player ratings vs Argentina: Ford fantastic while Lawes sets the tone and Itoje back to his best
George Ford took all the points in a remarkably dominant 27-10 win over the terrible Pumas, although Tom Curry saw his early yellow card for a direct encounter with Juan Cruz Mallia after a bunker check on red.
England were better in all aspects of the game, recovering quickly and confidently from that nightmare start, conceding penalty after penalty, while Ford fired from the tee after three quick drop goals, successfully executed within minutes unfailing accuracy maintained seven minutes in the first half.
standard sports Rugby correspondent Nick Purewal was at the Stade Velodrome to assess the England players on what was a great night for Steve Borthwick.
Back
Freddie Steward—7
Absolutely solid in every respect and especially back to his best under the high ball.
Jonny May – 7
Ball in hand, he wasn’t able to make a breakthrough, but he was totally on track with his pursuit that was crucial to the win.
Joe Marchant – 7
Once again he was unable to play up front, but was solid in defense and reliable throughout.
Manu Tuilagi – 8th
It was Tuilagi’s best performance in years and comes at just the right time for an England side so dependent on his power play.
Manu Tuilagi turned back the years with a monster performance in England’s midfield
/ REUTERSElliot Daly-7
Inexplicably, an attack was decided to go for the grubber kick, where a try was a good chance if the ball stayed in the hands but still bounced off the ball.
George Ford-9
The best individual performance of any player in Steve Borthwick’s burgeoning tenure in England and the performance that gave this Test group a boost.
Alex Mitchell – 8
He fully validated his selection with super-precise kicks and always offered the opportunity to attack the defense or speed up the attacking rhythm.
Forward
Ellis Genge – 7
A big step in the right direction for one of England’s emotional totems. At one point he smashed his boot on the pitch in anger and that anger is exactly what England need.
JamieGeorge – 8
A masterful turn from the captain who is not the captain. George directed the lineout and scrimmage and was busy on the field at all times.
Dan Cole – 8
Selected to thwart Argentina’s threatening scrum and delivered in abundance. Tempered the Pumas for the arrival of Will Stuart in the second half.
Maro Itoje – 9
This is his best performance in years and fully confirms his promise to deliver in this game.
Maro Itoje produced his best performance for England against Argentina
/ REUTERSOllie Chessum – 8th
Showed no signs of rust after his long-term injury and hit Argentina with great intensity and concentration from the start.
Courtney Lawes – 9
A tone-setting turn from a man who is so easy to follow and who knows how to lead with the best of examples. The collapse of dominance is just the tip of a brutal, relentless iceberg.
Tom Curry – 6
Because of the red card, he was unable to make an impact, which is unfortunate, even if it was justified. All players have to do is change their posture.
Ben Earl – 8
Perhaps his best performance in an England jersey and he carried over his Saracens form to the Test team.
Substitute
Theo Dan (for George, 71) – 7
A deserved cameo for the young Saracen who has so much potential.
Joe Marler (for Genge, 52) – 8
He extended dominance in the scrum and steered England home at the death.
Will Stuart (for Cole, 49) – 8
Picked up where Cole left off as England completely dominated Argentina from the set piece.
George Martin (for Chessum, 58) – 7
A very decent performance for the Leicester hardman, who once again shows exactly what he has to offer at Test level.
Lewis Ludlam (for Lawes, 65) – 7
For Borthwick he delivered a thrilling performance that ensured England got off to the best possible start to the World Cup.
Danny Care (for Mitchell, 62) – 7
So quick to snoop around the edges to hammer the final nails into Argentina’s coffin.
Marcus Smith (for Ford, 77) – 7
There was really little to do, but he did it with typical panache.
Ollie Lawrence (for Tuilagi, 68) – 7
Was busy and threw himself into every challenge and skirmish.
https://www.standard.co.uk/sport/rugby/england-player-ratings-vs-argentina-ford-itoje-lawes-tuilagi-b1106009.html England player ratings vs Argentina: Ford fantastic while Lawes sets the tone and Itoje back to his best
