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England Player Ratings vs Wales

By Alex Shaw
England's Anthony Watson is tackled by Wales' Jonathan Davies and George North last month (Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images)

England got their Rugby World Cup preparations under way at Twickenham on Sunday, as they beat Wales, 33-19.

There were some key questions for England still to answer ahead of Eddie Jones naming his 31-man squad for Japan on Monday and the Australian will be pleased with the performances of his charges, especially given the strength of the Welsh team that was brought to the capital.

We have run the rule over all 23 of England’s players below.

  1. Elliot Daly6

A quiet first half for Daly as England dominated possession, particularly in the first quarter, and denied him the opportunity to counter-attack. He will want his missed tackle on Gareth Davies back, although he linked the midfield and wings well in the times he did inject himself into the attacking line. Deserved man of the match solely for his audacious late drop goal.

  1. Joe Cokanasiga7

A bit of a mixed bag from Cokanasiga who was eager to look for work off of his wing and added to England’s power game around the fringes, coming into the game as a first receiver and pick and go option. On one loose Welsh kick he ran into traffic and was held up, coughing up the turnover as a result, whilst his first-up tackling on a couple of chases was inefficient, despite working hard to recover after. His physicality in attack was impressive.

  1. Jonathan Joseph8

Joseph was very influential early on, making telling contributions with all of his involvements, whether that was with precise passing and outside breaks in attack, or ripping the ball out of contact in defence. His defensive work in general was intelligent and effective throughout.

  1. Piers Francis7

If Francis’ role in the squad is to provide the Owen Farrell role from 2016 and 2017, he delivered at Twickenham. The Northampton inside centre put in a couple of thunderous tackles in defence and had soft hands to shift the point of contact in the midfield.

  1. Anthony Watson9

A strong showing from the Bath man who looked lively and sharp, despite missing most of last season with injury. He was good in the aerial competitions, displayed effective footwork and power as a carrier and chased and covered very well without the ball. Like Cokanasiga, he looked hungry for work and came in off his wing numerous times.

  1. George Ford6

A flawless kicking display will have pleased Jones, who will know he can rely on Ford’s boot in Japan if necessary. His tactical kicking fell short of Farrell’s with a few that were considerably beyond his chasers, although his play with ball in hand was solid and he linked well with Francis.

  1. Willie Heinz7

A confident debut from Heinz, whose array and timing of his passes in attack was a contributor to an impressive England first half. He was caught for speed on the blindside of the scrum on a couple of occasions, although managed the game well aside from that.

  1. Ellis Genge8

The loosehead caught the eye early with a typical bullocking carry, although it was his ability to turn the screw on Tomas Francis as the game went on that was the real takeaway. He held up well against early pressure from the Welsh scrum, before helping England gain an ascendancy.

  1. Luke Cowan-Dickie7

The hooker swooped on an overthrown Welsh lineout to grab a try on his first international start and his carrying was effective, if not spectacular throughout. One of his lineouts went amiss and he coughed up an unnecessary offside penalty in the second half, although it was an encouraging display from a player that has previously been limited to a role as Jamie George’s deputy.

  1. Dan Cole7

The Leicester tighthead provided a solid platform at the scrum and was able to provide his team with a turnover, as he forced a knock-on in defence. A solid 53-minute performance from the veteran.

  1. Joe Launchbury6

Launchbury went well in the loose, linking play and offering himself as a carrier and an option in support. He was an effective target for Cowan-Dickie at the lineout, too.

  1. Charlie Ewels7

England’s locking quartet is established at this point, although Ewels took his chance to impress greedily. He was an effective counter-rucker, pressured around the fringes for a charge down and had the line-speed to fit into England’s aggressive defence. He was targeted at the lineout successfully, too, taking two throws in the game.

  1. Lewis Ludlam8

A very confident and composed debut from Ludlam, who contributed in a number of ways. He was a physical carrier close to the ruck, made a number of big tackles, including a notable one on Ross Moriarty, and was persistently hunting the scrum-half and first receives with his line-speed.

  1. Tom Curry7

The flanker unfortunately had to hobble off after 28 minutes, although he was one of, if not the most impressive player on the pitch until his departure. His work rate was excellent as he tackled powerfully on the gain-line, popped up as a carrying threat on some incisive lines and made an important interception with his line-speed and read in defence.

  1. Billy Vunipola7

A bright start saw Vunipola demonstrate his strength in the carry and his early try came with four Welsh players wrapped around him. His soft hands helped link a couple of English attacks, too, and he kept working hard throughout the game.

Replacements

  1. Jack Singletonn/a

Came on with less than a minute to play, although he did connect with his only lineout.

  1. Joe Marlern/a

Unused replacement.

  1. Harry Williams6

Missed a costly tackle close to the England try line soon after coming on, although at scrum time he continued to turn the screw on Wales, proving to be a good combination with Genge.

  1. George Kruis6

Came on fairly late for Ewels, although immediately made his impact felt at the lineout.

  1. Courtney Lawes7

After replacing Curry early, Lawes impressed with his defensive work. The physicality of his scything tackles consistently repelled Wales’ power carriers and successfully switched momentum on a number of occasions. He also picked up a turnover at the breakdown, too.

  1. Ben Youngs6

Momentum had swung in Wales’ favour by the time Youngs replaced Heinz, which limited his ability to have the same offensive impact. That said, he provided pace in defence, particularly on the cover, which proved valuable.

  1. Joe Marchantn/a

Came on with less than a minute to play.

  1. Manu Tuilagin/a

Offered impact after replacing Francis late on, including a powerful foray through two or three would-be Welsh tacklers.

Watch: Tom Curry speaks to the press ahead of England's game with Wales