Two contrasting post-Cardiff verdicts are still vying with each other. One is that Wales, who have lost 12 of their past 15 internationals, displayed almost no cutting edge and even less tactical acumen. The second is that England defended so capably and did such an effective job of suffocating Welsh momentum that, enticing for neutrals or not, this was among their more valuable results since they reached the 2019 Rugby World Cup final.
Both conclusions felt valid on Saturday night, especially when you listened to one of the visitors’ try-scorers, Kyle Sinckler, speaking from the heart after England’s biggest win in Cardiff since 2003. Sinckler, who now has 59 caps for his country, endured a traumatic time at the same venue in 2019 when his loss of discipline helped Wales to a significant 21-13 victory and few redemption stories have involved more honesty or self-awareness.
“Today was a very pivotal moment not only in my career but in my life,” said Sinckler, eyes gleaming with satisfaction. “Looking back on the experience I had in 2019 my career could have gone one of two ways. I’m not going to lie, I had some demons coming back to the Principality Stadium. It was probably one of the hardest days of my life.
“I know we played here in 2021 but that was during Covid … no fans, a totally different experience. Walking back into the stadium yesterday, I remembered sitting on these stairs in floods of tears. I know we were playing Wales but for me it was a Test match between who I am today versus the person I was.
“In 2019 I was a totally different person. I entered the stadium with a lot of hate, a lot of anger and a big chip on my shoulder. Warren Gatland had said something that made headlines and that hurt, if I’m being honest. I felt targeted. When I got subbed off and was sitting on the bench I felt I’d let a lot of people down. Four years on I can truly say that was a blessing. Today I leave with an open heart, a lot of gratitude, a lot of appreciation and a lot of love. I finally feel I’ve moved on.”
When Sinckler, consequently, talks of the longer-term benefits he feels England will gain from their first away win under Steve Borthwick it would be small minded to dispute his sincere belief that the team will be the stronger for it. “You’re driving in and you’ve got even the 80-year-old grannies giving you gestures. It’s amazing, that hatred!
“Fair play to them – afterwards they want to shake your hand, take pictures and there’s no hard feelings. [But] it’s a cauldron, an old-school Colosseum, so it is tough. Over the past two years or so we’d have probably lost that match – especially how we started the second half. But one of the things Steve and the coaches have implemented with us is to fight, making sure we never give up.
“Being honest, with England in the past year or two, once we’ve faced a bit of adversity we’ve kind of crumbled. Today was a big step for us as a group to show we have that fight inside us. We didn’t capitulate under the pressure, if anything we embraced it. From the outside it probably looked like a messy Test match at times, but for us it’s a huge win.”
While Wales, having lost their first three Six Nations games for the first time in 16 years, must now be considered second favourites when they head to Rome next week to play Italy, England can at least start dreaming of ruffling the feathers of both France and Ireland on consecutive Saturdays. “The difference between being a hero and a coward is your actions,” said Sinckler. “We all feel fear … I won’t lie to you and say when you look at those two teams you don’t have that fear.
“But what do we do with that pressure? We will walk towards it. If you want to be the best you’ve got to beat the best. I’m not saying we’re going to beat them but we’re going to give it a good shot. The first game is at Twickenham, our home ground, and we want to make that place a fortress again. That starts when we play France.”
For England to upset better opposition, though, they will need Owen Farrell to rediscover his kicking boots – the captain missed four attempts in Cardiff – and for their back row of Lewis Ludlam, Jack Willis and Alex Dombrandt to be similarly influential around the breakdown. Giving Marcus Smith and Henry Arundell more than 15 seconds off the bench would also help. But England’s self-belief is slowly returning and, as the passionate Sinckler can vouch, the past is now less important than the future.
