1
'That was an incredibly powerful England performance'
By Peter Thompson
Conor O'Shea conceded England simply had too much power at Twickenham on Saturday but he was "immensely proud" of his Italy side after they were crushed 57-14 in the Six Nations.
The Azzurri's losing streak in the tournament was extended to 21 matches, the excellent Manu Tuilagi and Brad Shields claiming doubles as England scored eight tries to move just a point behind leaders Wales with one round remaining.
A classy score from Tommaso Allan – which brought Italy level – and a second-half Luca Morisi try gave Italy fans something to shout about, but they remain without a point.
Head coach O'Shea was pleased to see Italy battle on but felt they were unable to match the physicality of Eddie Jones' men.
"It was difficult," said O'Shea. "That was an incredibly powerful England performance.
"We tried to play and we created a lot when we had the opportunity, but there was too much power out there.
"I'm immensely proud of all of these boys because they never stopped trying.
"What you saw out there was a lot of people who played until the end. I wouldn't get too carried away with the scoreline against us.
"It was straight one-on-one tackles that cost us dearly but there were some individuals who put in an incredible shift for us."
Italy face France in Rome in their last match of the tournament next Saturday.
Trending on RugbyPass
2
Robertson says Italy sensed All Blacks' weaknesses
3
All Blacks player ratings vs Italy
4
Scotland's Sione Tuipulotu admits anger at Australian rugby
5
Latest Comments
Only 8% of the NZ voting base voted for the Act party, so it does not represent "all people". You sound super upset and sensitive because Perenara spoke out about something you don't like, which is a precious far right-wing party trying to rewrite New Zealand’s founding document to suit a particular political agenda that disenfranchises the indigenous people and wants to eradicate their culture through assimilation and domination. Your perspective is skewed tbh. Your comment about Perenara being "super woke" shows your fragility and xenophobia. Maybe the All Blacks should stop doing any haka so that Maori culture isn't displayed for financial benefits and entertainment. Do you know what the other players in the team think? Are they your mates and you rang them straight after the game to get their thoughts? How did the Hurricane Poua debacle go? Any sponsors pull out yet???
Go to commentsThey won. They got the job done. That's a trick the Boks have mastered. That's a very good sign if they do that, because it's good for them knowing they can get the job done in close games
Go to comments