England kept their Six Nations title hopes alive with a convincing victory over Ireland at Twickenham as many home fans got a first glimpse of Eddie Jones’s side in the flesh since their run to the World Cup final in Japan.
George Ford, Elliot Daly and Luke Cowan-Dickie crossed the whitewash as the Red Rose sealed a 24-12 win in south-west London to deny the Irish the triple crown.
RUCK’S MAN OF THE MATCH – Sam Underhill (England)
All-action display from the Bath flanker whose breakdown work and 21 tackles deservedly earned him our man of the match award.
Best players:
Maro Itoje: The second-row forced numerous turnovers with the power of his tackling, stole Irish line-outs and was a thorn in Ireland’s side at the contact area. He had a couple of forceful carries, too, and was particularly influential winning the collisions close to the ruck.
Manu Tuilagi: He’s the type of guy you’d turn to in any situation. An absolute powerhouse.
Courtney Lawes: The Guinness man of the match. He was everywhere. Happy birthday to him
Underpeformers:
Johnny Sexton: The fly-half made a costly error that led to George Ford’s opening try and he also had a bad day from the kicking tee. Disastrous performance.
Did Johnny Sexton put on two left boots before the game today?
— Balls.ie (@ballsdotie) February 23, 2020
When #Johnnysexton plays badly, it’s usually bad news for #Ireland pic.twitter.com/6sTn3NyYhD
— Michael George (@mickgeo3) February 23, 2020
England vs Ireland player ratings
Take a look at how every player rated below.
England: Elliot Daly 7, Jonny May 7, Manu Tuilagi 8, Owen Farrell (captain) 7, Jonathan Joseph 7, George Ford 7.5, Ben Youngs 7; Joe Marler 7, Jamie George 8, Kyle Sinckler 7, Maro Itoje 8, George Kruis 7, Courtney Lawes 8, Sam Underhill 8.5, Tom Curry 7
Ireland: Jordan Larmour 6, Andrew Conway 6, Robbie Henshaw 7, Bundee Aki 6 , Jacob Stockdale 5, Johnny Sexton 4, Conor Murray 6; Cian Healy 5, Rob Herring 5, Tadhg Furlong 6, Devin Toner 5, James Ryan 6, Peter O’Mahony 7, Josh van der Flier 6, CJ Stander 7
Getting to know the England XV
15. Elliot Daly
- Age | 27
- Caps | 41
- Club | Saracens
- Salary | Unknown
- Partner | Michelle Cussell – The fullback met his gorgeous girlfriend when he was still at school. The pair met at the £18,618-a-year Whitgift School for boys in Croydon, south London, where Daly, 28, was a pupil and she worked as a sports events organiser – although they were both 18 at the time.
- Nickname | Briefcase – He got his nickname after turned up at his first Wasps training session in his Whitgift school uniform and carrying you know what!
14. Jonny May
- Age | 29
- Caps | 54
- Club | Leicester Tigers
- Salary | £325,000
- Partner | Sophie May – The blonde-haired fitness fanatic earns her living as a personal trainer, posting regular updates on the Girlsontopoffitness Instagram page.
13. Manu Tuilagi
- Age | 28
- Caps | 41
- Club | Leicester Tigers
- Salary | £550,000
- Partner | Chantelle Garrity
12. Owen Farrell
- Age | 28
- Caps | 81
- Club | Saracens
- Salary | £750,000
- Partner | Georgie Farrell – Despite him being one of England’s star men, Owen Farrell’s wife Georgie likes to keep her life extremely private.
- Nickname | Little Faz/Faz – Used to predominantly be Little Faz but now his Dad, Andy, has jetted off to work for Ireland he seems to have shaken that part of his nickname.
![](https://www.ruck.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/EFDeWnLWsAAtCQO.jpg)
11. Jonathan Joseph
- Age |28
- Caps | 49
- Club |Bath Rugby