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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Sport
Luke McLaughlin

Scotland 31-20 England: Six Nations Murrayfield player ratings

Scotland’s Kyle Steyn wears the player of the match medal
Scotland’s Kyle Steyn wears the player of the match medal after his stellar display against England at Murrayfield. Photograph: Stu Forster/Getty Images

Scotland

Tom Jordan Solid under high ball, did his bit in a cohesive attacking display from Gregor Townsend’s fluent backline. 7

Kyle Steyn Profound threat with powerful, direct running – and he kept coming all game. Quite a contrast between his scintillating performance and Henry Arundell’s. 9 Player of the match

Huw Jones Ran the length for decisive try after George Ford was charged down. Confident early finish helped establish home supremacy. 8

Sione Tuipulotu Typically punishing and direct carrying into contact combined with smart leadership. Ushered Arundell off stage with protestations to the referee. 7

Jamie Dobie Not as influential or dangerous as Steyn on the other wing but he still produced a couple of big moments. 7

Finn Russell Class. Brilliant tap-on for Jones’s opener and accurate place-kicking helped build lead. Stunning jinking run and clever kick created third try. 9

Ben White Excellent box-kicking combined with slick distribution was crucial in Scotland’s early salvo. Set tempo alongside the accomplished Russell. 7

Nathan McBeth Impressive around the field on first Six Nations start, contributed to the hosts’ important first quarter. Life was more difficult at scrum. 6

George Turner Some determined work at the breakdown but none of the front-rowers got Scotland moving forward at the set piece. 6

Zander Fagerson Dominated in scrums. Withdrawn early after a pummelling from Ellis Genge and company but brought his physicality in the loose. 6

Gregor Brown Justified his introduction to the second row. Set piece was far from ideal but mucked in to press England back. 6

Scott Cummings Unaffected by loss of his regular lock partner, Grant Gilchrist, after the flop in Rome. Key contribution to maul defence before half-time. 7

Jamie Ritchie Applied simple early finish on the wing. Teamed up with Rory Darge to keep England on the back foot at the breakdown. 7

Rory Darge Drove at heart of English defence with powerful attacking carries and put his body on the line at the other end. 8

Jack Dempsey Solid, composed, physical. Played a full part in a high-class performance from the Scottish pack that they badly needed. 7

Replacements: Matt Fagerson (for Ritchie ht) Crucial chargedown on Ford when England were threatening to apply some serious scoreboard pressure 9; Pierre Schoeman (for McBeth 49) Could not overturn England’s scrum supremacy. 6; Dave Cherry (for Turner 51) Busy around the park, nearly got over for a try. 8; Elliot Millar Mills (for Z Fagerson 51) Contributed well in attack and defence after appearing off the bench. 8; Max Williamson (for Dempsey 58) Solid after coming on. 6; George Horne (for White 59) Decent distribution. 6; Darcy Graham (for Jordan 69) Huge tackle on Freddie Steward in the closing minutes and some bright running. 8; Adam Hastings (for Dobie 76) n/a.

England

Freddie Steward Fulfilled job description: solid if unspectacular. One handy interception but scant chance to make attacking impact and hammered into touch by Darcy. 6

Tom Roebuck Sloppy handling error when England were searching for a bonus point. Arguably caught out for one Scotland try, just couldn’t get involved. 5

Tommy Freeman Costly early defensive misread followed by big carry for England’s first try; generally a frustrating afternoon against high-class midfield opponents. 5

Fraser Dingwall Little front-foot ball to work with. His craftiness counted but outshone by Jones and the Scotland captain, Tuipulotu. 6

Henry Arundell Credit for good early tackle but subsequent failure to release led to loss of 14 points during his sin-bin period. Second offence was foolishly reckless. 3

George Ford Careless when charged down at a crucial time when attempting a drop goal. Prompted intelligently with his distribution but an indifferent day overall. 5

Alex Mitchell Mostly positive afternoon in attack and defence, kicked competently but unable to turn the tide. Expensive knock-on after a sniping run. 7

Ellis Genge Made his presence felt in scrums and the loose but calamitous defensive bungle allowed White in to score before half-time. 6

Luke Cowan-Dickie Typical no-arms tackle gave away a needless penalty but showed his experience around the park while scrummaging and throwing well. 6

Joe Heyes Hit hard in defence and helped to establish England’s ascendancy in the scrums. A growing influence on the game. 7

Maro Itoje Far from his most impactful afternoon in an England shirt. One costly knock-on but generally efficient. 6

Ollie Chessum Big target at the lineout, massive work rate and combines technique, power and desire. Superb interception before half-time. 9

Guy Pepper Plenty of effort, as is to be expected, but the Bath flanker was unable to stem the Scottish tide. 6

Sam Underhill Performed a decent job to tidy up some messy lineout ball at one point but hooked early by Steve Borthwick. 5

Ben Earl Carried purposefully, brought energy and kept Scotland’s tacklers honest. Contributed to the scrums and less sexy stuff. Deserved his try. 7

Replacements: Tom Curry (for Underhill ht) Introduced at the break but could make little difference overall. 6; Jamie George (for Cowan-Dickie 57) Tried his best but the die had been cast. 6; Bevan Rodd (for Genge 57) Gave away a scrum penalty. 5; Fin Smith (for Arundell 57) Joined for final quarter but little ball to work with. 6; Henry Pollock (for Pepper 57) Joined long list of culprits who wasted promising possession with a knock-on. 5; Alex Coles (for Itoje 58) Unable to make his presence known. 6; Trevor Davison (for Heyes 68) Did his job but match was gone. 6; Ben Spencer (for Mitchell 69) Struggled to make any impact. 5

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