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Not always in sport do you get a shot at redemption and successfully taking advantage of that opportunity is even rarer sports
England’s pack, and their front row in particular, will have had four years of sleepless nights about that early November evening in 2019 sports
In the 2019 Rugby World Cup final, England were decimated by South Africa’s power up front, as the brilliance of a scintillating semi-final win over New Zealand was quickly replaced by the humiliation of a 32-12 thumping sports
The Springboks, then as now, pride themselves on their physicality and brutality at the breakdown, the set-piece and in open play sports
Yet on a rainy night in Paris four years on, England’s pack fronted up, set the platform in a thrilling World Cup semi-final and earned their redemption arc sports
Yet it still wasn’t enough sports
This time, albeit by one point rather than 20, the result was the same – England’s players slumped on the turf in despair while their opponents revelled in victory sports
The Springbok celebrations were more muted this time, understandably so given there is one more crucial match against the All Blacks standing sports between them and their ultimate goal, but the English heartbreak was the same, even if the journey to get there was vastly different sports
In Yokohama, South Africa won a scarcely believable 11 scrums to England’s three, including six scrum penalties, as the English eight were splintered time and again sports
Dan Cole became the fall guy for that embarrassment – the tighthead prop, supposedly renowned for his scrummaging, forced to play 77 minutes after Kyle Sinckler’s early injury and being obliterated by the combination of Tendai ‘Beast’ Mtawarira and Steven Kitshoff sports
The fact that Cole and Joe Marler, who came off the bench early in the second half that day, were selected by Steve Borthwick to start this revenge game precisely because of their scrum prowess will have surely given them a surge of confidence sports
And the fact they not only survived, but thrived, in the front row this time around will have been sheer vindication sports
Borthwick entrusted the duo to paint an early picture of scrum parity to referee Ben O’Keeffe and they delivered, providing the base that led to multiple first-half penalties from the trusty boot of Owen Farrell sports
Cole and Marler helped ensure scrum parity early on but that faded once the replacements came on (AFP via Getty Images)However, as the game wore on, Borthwick’s decision started to become prescient for the wrong reasons sports
As Sinckler and Ellis Genge came on as prop replacements, the Springboks own bomb squad from the bench – led by Ox Nche and Vincent Koch – started to dominate at scrum-time sports
Each engagement started to become eerily reminiscent of 2019 and it was eventually a scrum penalty on halfway that led to Handre Pollard’s decisive, game-winning three-pointer with two minutes to go sports
It felt almost unfair on England’s big men given that the pack, as a whole, had more than held their own in other facets sports
Of the 13 England forwards who played some part in that 2019 final, eight appeared in this last-four clash and stamped their mark all over a first half that was by far England’s best 40 minutes under Borthwick sports
Maro Itoje was a lineout fiend, stealing a Springboks throw-in on halfway and putting doubt in the head of Bongi Mbonambi, whose crooked throw in his own 22 gave Farrell his first penalty goal of the day sports
A new face from four years, George Martin, justified his surprise second-row selection ahead of incumbent Ollie Chessum on just his fourth Test start as he brilliantly marshalled England’s maul defence sports
If Boks lock Eben Etzesports beth is world rugby’s best maul disruptor, then he may have witnessed first-hand the emergence of a new challenger to that crown sports
Martin caused havoc as England improbably won three consecutive maul turnovers from attacking South African lineouts in the first half to frustrate their much-fancied opponents sports
Pollard ultimately kicked the winning penalty, from a scrum infringement (PA Wire)The celebrations from the likes of Itoje, Jamie George and Ben Earl as those penalties and free-kicks were earned by the pack showed just how important this part of the gameplan was sports
It began putting clear doubt in Springbok minds, as the worried tone from skipper Siya Kolisi when he discussed matter with referee O’Keeffe sports betrayed sports
The English tactic of throwing bodies in to contest every ruck relied on the diesel engines of the forwards and they delivered by dominating collisions and allowing the aerial bombardment strategy that followed to be effective sports
But ultimately, despite a gameplan executed as well as it possibly could have been, the gap in quality sports between the sides proved too much to overcome sports
South Africa adjusted, Pollard came on for Manie Libbok to dictate proceedings with his metronomic boot and English heartbreak ensued sports
There was no shame in a one-point defeat from a semi-final that was much closer than most expected and England’s pack should feel redeemed from the nightmare of 2019 sports
But that won’t make this semi-final hurt any less sports
Perhaps 2027 will give them an opportunity to avenge a new pain sports
More aboutEngland RugbySouth Africa rugbyRugby World CupDan ColeJoin our commenting forumJoin thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their repliesComments1/3England pack earn World Cup redemption but suffer new heartbreakEngland pack earn World Cup redemption but suffer new heartbreakCole and Marler helped ensure scrum parity early on but that faded once the replacements came on AFP via Getty ImagesEngland pack earn World Cup redemption but suffer new heartbreakPollard ultimately kicked the winning penalty, from a scrum infringement PA WireEngland pack earn World Cup redemption but suffer new heartbreakDan Cole was England’s fall guy in 2019 but held his own four years on AP✕Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this articleWant to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today sports
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England were grappling with a selection quandary on the eve of their crucial World Cup clash against South Africa, with captain Jos Buttler weighing up Chris Woakes’ role as leader of the attack sports
Woakes’ new-ball skills have been a reliable centrepiece of the side ever since their white-ball reinvention eight years ago, but he has suffered an uncharacteristic wobble since arriving in India sports
Three loose starts from the usually dependable seamer have undermined England’s efforts so far and an economy rate of 7 sports
5 an over, coupled with two wickets at 67 sports
50 each, tells a concerning story sports
But with victory a must in Mumbai on Saturday following defeats to New Zealand and Afghanistan, taking the most established pace bowler out of the firing line would still represent a significant call sports
Buttler acknowledged Woakes’ long-term record and recent dip in form represented a conflicted picture and is set to thrash the matter out with head coach Matthew Mott sports
RecommendedBen Stokes feared his Cricket World Cup was over when he heard his hip ‘pop’Jonny Bairstow: England-South Africa World Cup double will be ‘great spectacle’“He’s been a fantastic performer for an incredibly long time for England in all the formats and especially in one-day cricket,” he said sports
“But we’re all honest guys, right? We’re all honest professionals who hold each other to high standards and individually expect a lot of ourselves sports
He knows he’s not performing quite how he would like to at the minute, and that’s frustrating, but there’s no judgement from our side sports
“We always back all our players that are in our team - we picked them for a number of reasons and one because they’re high-class players and he’s certainly one of those sports
”David Willey stands by as a specialist powerplay bowler, eager to showcase his left-arm swing on the World Cup stage after missing out on the 2019 tournament by a whisker, while Surrey’s Gus Atkinson has yet to feature sports
Whatever happens, Ben Stokes is locked in to make his eagerly-anticipated return after missing all three games with a hip injury sports
And, with his stand-in Harry Brook providing the only bright spot of a botched chase against Afghanistan, a rebalancing of the XI could be under consideration sports
Sam Curran, light on runs and expensive with the ball, has left himself particularly vulnerable sports
Sam Curran has not fired with bat or ball to any great extent (Getty Images)“I think I’ve got so many options within the squad, selection is always tough,” Buttler said sports
“You’re working out the right balance, which is always venue dependent as well, and we’ve had a good chance to see the wicket here and gather a bit more information sports
“Obviously Ben has trained really well and it’s great to see him back sports
He obviously brings a lot on the field and with his presence and leadership skills as well, so he’s someone who is always good to turn to sports
”Both teams are looking to bounce back from stinging upsets last time out, with the Proteas’ implosion against the Netherlands somehow leapfrogging England’s reverse against Afghanistan in the pantheon of World Cup shocks within 24 hours sports
The last time the two sides faced off at this storied venue, in the 2016 T20 World Cup, it was a classic encounter that saw England hunt down 230 - still their record chase in the format sports
There are six survivors from that side still on parade seven years later, including Buttler sports
Now he is hoping England can relocate similar attacking instincts once again sports
“There are great memories of that night, albeit a long time ago sports
It was one of my favourite games,” he recalled sports
“I think this is one of the great grounds in India sports
I love playing cricket here sports
I think it’s a fantastic cricket wicket and, absolutely, it should suit us sports
“We want to find ways to make a play, to put the opposition under pressure in lots of different ways sports
That doesn’t always mean hitting fours and sixes, it means can we push back when the opposition is on top or can we really take the initiative in different ways sports
That’s what we want to live by as a team sports
”More aboutJos ButtlerChris WoakesEngland cricketSouth Africa cricketCricket World CupICC Cricket World Cup 2023Join our commenting forumJoin thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their repliesComments1/2England grappling with selection quandry ahead of South Africa clashEngland grappling with selection quandry ahead of South Africa clashSam Curran has not fired with bat or ball to any great extent Getty ImagesEngland grappling with selection quandry ahead of South Africa clashChris Woakes has not found his form at the World Cup so farGetty Images✕Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this articleWant to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today sports
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truncatedName}}Log in / Register {{#items}}{{#stampSmall}}{{/stampSmall}}{{#stampClimate}}{{/stampClimate}}{{#stampPremium}}{{/stampPremium}}{{title}}{{#desc}}{{desc}}{{/desc}}{{#children}}{{title}}{{/children}}{{/items}}Indy100Crosswords & PuzzlesMost CommentedNewslettersAsk Me AnythingVirtual EventsVouchersCompare✕Log inEmail addressPasswordEmail and password don't matchSubmitForgotten your password?New to The Independent?RegisterOr if you would prefer:SIGN IN WITH GOOGLEWant an ad-free experience?View offersThis site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy notice and Terms of service apply sports
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