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Subscribe to RSS FeedRatings: England v France
Star man: Jason Robinson
What a night of glory in Paris! Well, if you are English anyway... but both winners and losers served up a gleaming night of rugby in this fabulous World Cup once more.
43 out of the 44 players were used, with the unfortunate Clément Poitrenaud once again left kicking his heels on the French bench, and here's our view on how they all fared...
ENGLAND
Jason Robinson - Superb yet again, solid under high ball and made a number of typically jinking runs. Sensational career stretches to another game. 9
Paul Sackey - Couple of good early runs; saw little of ball after that but part of a strong defensive effort. 7
Mathew Tait - Moved to wing for second half after Lewsey injury. Did not miss a tackle, but hardly a chance to show attacking threat. 7
Mike Catt - Patchy kicking performance, and some awry passing in first half, but made some big hits in second half and steadied the ship when it was rocking. 8
Josh Lewsey - Capitalised on Traille error to score early try but his threat was nullified by Clerc, and came off injured in 39th minute. 7
Jonny Wilkinson - Missed three first-half goal attempts, but strong kicking for touch and booted the goals that mattered in final five minutes. 8
Andy Gomarsall - A clever kick into corner for Lewsey's try and continued good combination with Wilkinson at half-back. 7
Andrew Sheridan - Disappointing at scrum time after last week against Australia, but was still a force in loose. 6
Mark Regan - Struggled mightily with the pace and his throwing in the first half, but helped his team to dig in in the second. 6
Phil Vickery - Huffed and puffed, but was negated by Milloud. 5
Simon Shaw - Superb in the loose and once Regan had found his line, was just as good at line-out time. 8
Ben Kay - Did not see his usual amount of ball in the line-out, but lasted the pace and did not shirk defensive duties. 6
Martin Corry - Typical bulldog grit and determination, Came to the fore in the final eight minutes when England turned the game around. 8
Lewis Moody - Scavenger in loose, doing most of his good work in defence, and a couple of hefty runs. 7
Nick Easter - Tidied well around the back of the scrum and started well i the loose, but didn't last the pace. 7
REPLACEMENTS
George Chuter (on for Regan, 66 mins) - Nailed a couple of line-outs and hardly seen in last 15 minutes. 5
Matt Stevens (on for Vickery, 56 mins) - Replaced Vickery with a quarter left, and continued superb tournament. 7
Lawrence Dallaglio (on for Easter, 69 mins) - Marshalled well when he entered late on. 6
Joe Worsley (on for Moody, 54 mins) - Decisive clip of Clerc's heels with 15 minutes left and great in defence. 8
Peter Richards (on for Gomarsall, 71 mins) - Little chance to impact on game. 6
Toby Flood (on for Catt, 68 mins) - Did not see much of the ball. 6
Dan Hipkiss (on for Lewsey, 39 mins) - Made a difference when he came on, a great one-handed offload to Tait standing out. 7
FRANCE
Damien Traille - Dawdled and slipped for Lewsey's try and kicking from deep was often aimless, but some of the line-attacking was effective. 7
Vincent Clerc - Did not give Lewsey a moment's peace and unfortunate to miss out on the final after a strong all-round display. 7
David Marty - Could not find any chinks in England's defence, and was neutralised. Hands often let him down. 5
Yannick Jauzion - Made several telling runs but never seemed to be looking for the killer pass. 7
Cédric Heymans - Some poor kicks from hand but strong in defence. 6
Lionel Beauxis - Some good tactical kicks in first half and slotted all three of his penalty attempts. Strangely brought off early. 7
Jean-Baptiste Elissalde - Reliable service to Beauxis, and an authoritative presence. 7
Olivier Milloud - Needed a strong display in scrum and produced the goods. Effective in loose. 8
Raphaël Ibañez - Nailed jumpers at line-out throughout and part of a strong front-row effort. 7
Pieter De Villiers - Was Sheridan's equal in the scrum, which was his main task of the night. 8
Fabien Pelous - Forced off in 25th minute with rib injury after Wilkinson hit; solid until that point. 6
Jérôme Thion - Reliable in the line-out but missed the presence of long-term lock partner Pelous. 6
Serge Betsen - Showed no ill-effects from head injury last week and was his usual all-tackling self. 7
Thierry Dusautoir - Again France's star man in the pack, in defence and going forward, especially in first half. 8
Julien Bonnaire - His usual solid self in the line-out but could not change course of match going forward. 7
REPLACEMENTS
Dimitri Szarzewski (on for Ibanez, 50 mins) - Gave away crucial penalty with five minutes left with high tackle on Robinson. 5
Jean-Baptiste Poux (on for De Villiers, 66 mins) - Shored up tiring front row. 6
Sebastien Chabal (on for Pelous, 25 mins) - His danger nullified, although he nearly barged over with 14 minutes left. 6
Imanol Harinordoquy (on for Betsen, 66 mins) - Hardly seen. 6
Frédéric Michalak (on for Beauxis, 51 mins) - Added little when he came on, with some poor kicks out of hand. 5
Christophe Dominici (on for Heymans, 60 mins) - Did little to affect outcome. 6
Clement Poitrenaud - did not come on.
