Perhaps it will not be a French fait accompli on Super Saturday. England’s Six Nations title hopes remain faint but down the M4 they will accelerate to Cardiff on the final weekend blessed with extra gears, Italy duly dispatched as the hosts unlocked a desired dimension that the paying public have demanded.
Boring England? The criticism that followed the narrowest of wins over Scotland felt fair given the straying from the attacking strategy that Steve Borthwick has hoped to instil but there could be no arguing that the hosts did not show ambition here. Indeed, particularly in a helter-skelter first half, there were times where England’s reckless abandon threatened to do more harm than good, before the shackles were finally cast aside as they burst into bright, brilliant colour after the interval.
