England player ratings v Wales: Sam Underhill and Mako Vunipola shine in Autumn Nations Cup win

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Will Macpherson28 November 2020

England qualified for the final of the Autumn Nations Cup with a 24-13 win over Wales in Llanelli. 

Here’s how Eddie Jones’ men rated…

15 Elliot Daly - 6 (out of 10)

In the wars, suffering an injury issue shortly after Joseph went off – not ideal with a 6-2 bench. Did a pretty good job, especially as balls rained down from the sky. One big, slightly risky, hit on Adams. 

14 Jonathan Joseph - 5

Lasted 50 minutes before being taken off for Watson, who seems likely to start next week. Joseph got his hands on the ball plenty, although never quite burst through when it looked like it might be on. Very solid.

13 Henry Slade - 6

Looked happier a position out at No13, and recovered well after a couple of early errors – knocking-on in contact on his first carry and charged down for the first try. On the end of a good team try, and sent one huge touch-finder.

12 Owen Farrell (c) - 6

Strange to see him miss three times from the tee, including his first two. Could have tried to score himself, but passed on to Slade to go over in the corner.

11 Jonny May - 6

Can’t score tries like he did last week every time . Popped up around the field, but never with great space. 

10 George Ford - 6 

A little ragged on his first start since March. Some of his kicking wasn’t great, including sending a kick-off out on the full, but was a running threat. England simply look a more dangerous side in attack when he is around.

9 Ben Youngs - 6

Went on one good run, turned over once. 

1 Mako Vunipola - 8

Had a very good day. Dominated Samson Lee at the scrum – although perhaps not as much as Romain Poite thought – then scored England’s second try. It was his just his second score in England colours, and first since 2014.

2 Jamie George - 7

The lineout wasn’t absolutely perfect, but it was pretty good. Carried well and kept his discipline when tested by a shirt-pull from Alun Wyn Jones. 

3 Kyle Sinckler - 7

Played his part in that dominant set piece and was a troublesome presence for Wales. Nearly scored, too. 

4 Maro Itoje - 7

Always a big presence, but not at his absolute best. Lovely pass in the buildup to Slade’s try, but gave away a careless penalty as Wales chipped away at the lead in the second half. 

5 Joe Launchbury - 7

A very good shift, again, from a player in fine form. A powerful performer at the set piece and getting around the park well, too. 

6 Tom Curry - 8

Was withdrawn earlier than usual with what looked like an injury. Neat interplay with Underhill, both in attack and defence, and won a great penalty in England’s 22 that meant his team went into the break in the lead.

7 Sam Underhill - 9

A pretty epic performance that saw him offer even more than he usually does. Put in a great tackle on Faletau on his own line, was a force with the ball in hand, and just popped up everywhere. One blot was an unpunished hit on Dan Biggar in the air.

8 Billy Vunipola - 8

Workmanlike showing. Topped the tackle count with 11. Also carried 17 times, more than double any other Englishman. One of them very nearly brought him a try in the lead-up to his brother’s score.

Selected subs

17 Ellis Genge - 7

Was smarting to get on, but Vunipola’s impressive showing meant he had to wait. When he did, England won yet another scrum penalty. 

21 Jack Willis - 7

Came on for Curry, and retained that level with one epic turnover late in the game. England have so many options on the flank.

23 Anthony Watson - 6

Jones will be delighted to have him back. Made good metres on both his carries out wide. 

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