5 Things You Missed: England 16-15 Scotland – 2025 Six Nations
Yesterday at 02:44 PM
England have won the Calcutta Cup for the first time in four years, with Steve Borthwick’s side defeating Scotland by the skin of their teeth. A missed conversion from Finn Russell was the decisive moment for England’s victory, after Duhan van der Merwe’s late try threatened to break English hearts.
Russell had a miserable afternoon from the kicking tee, with three conversions sent wide of the posts. The three missed kicks proved crucial come the close of the match, as England held strong at 16-15, thanks to the on-point marksmanship of both Marcus and Fin Smith’s efforts from the boot.
Scroll down for five things you missed from the Allianz Stadium
THE ON FIELD ACTION: ENGLAND 16 – 15 SCOTLAND
Scotland opened the scoring after just four minutes, with the hot start bringing a hush upon the home supporters at the Allianz Stadium. Duhan van der Merwe kicked the attacking move into gear, before the wing offloaded to Huw Jones. The midfielder then played a pass back inside to Ben White, with the scrum half gifted a clean path to the whitewash. Finn Russell did not pack his shooting boots, and missed his first effort from the tee.
England delighted their home fans with an immediate response, as after an arduous series of short drives to the line, the ball found Tommy Freeman with a full head of steam. The Northampton wing battered over Russell to score, and Marcus Smith nailed the conversion for a two point lead after eight minutes.
Scotland had the final score of the first half, with the move again started by powerhouse wing van der Merwe. The South African born star offloaded to Huw Jones, and could not be forced into touch by a covering Ollie Sleightholme. A second missed conversion kept the score-lines tight, with just three points between the Calcutta Cup rivals at the half-time whistle.
HALF TIME: ENGLAND 7 – 10 SCOTLAND
It took a quarter of an hour to break the second half deadlock, as Marcus Smith sent a penalty through the posts. The Harlequin took England back onto level terms at 10-10. Scotland back row Jamie Ritchie then gave away a penalty for not rolling away at the tackle, with Smith taking England back into the lead at the 66th minute.
Harry Randall was then lifted up by two Scotland players, which handed England another penalty. Fin Smith nailed the long range shot at the posts, to hand England six-point lead into the last 10 minutes. Duhan van der Merwe then had his customary input upon the Calcutta Cup, as he raced away to score in the corner, with a mountain of pressure then placed upon Finn Russell to seal the win.
But thankfully for England, Russell’s poor form from the tee would continue, as England held on to the win by the skin of their teeth.
5 THINGS YOU MISSED: ENGLAND 16-15 SCOTLAND
1. Final whistle skirmish as tempers flare at the Allianz Stadium
There was a skirmish at the final whistle, after a rolling maul was shunted into touch to close out the match. Scotland’s co-captains Finn Russell and Rory Darge were passionate in their appeals for a free kick to keep their hopes alive, yet England’s former captain Jamie George was equally vocal in how the match was now done and dusted.
The respective national team leaders crowded around the referee, with plenty of debate around whether the ball was held up, barraged into touch, or illegally halted by the jubilant England players.
2. Missing shooting boots and wayward footwear
With Finn Russell leaving his shooting boots in the Twickenham changing rooms, England were able to scrape a win in the Six Nations. The main miss of the match was Russell’s skewed conversion that would have won the match for Scotland, after Duhan van der Merwe’s dotted down for a 79th minute try.
There was plenty of first half footwear focus, with Finn Russell, Marcus Smith and Will Stuart all questioning their choice of boot. Starting with Russell, the regularly on-point Scotland fly half sent two conversions wide of the mark, with his shooting boots seemingly left in the changing rooms.
Marcus Smith sent a wayward slice to touch mid-way through the first half, with the Scotland fans in attendance enjoying a few jeers and whistles at the Harlequins’ expense. Then, whilst he would not be putting boot to ball, England prop Will Stuart found himself with just one boot at the 17th minute, after an opportune Scotland player sent his foot ward to the sidelines.
3. “This is how legends are made” – appropriate song for Calcutta trophy lift
2. Maro Itoje had the honour of being the first England player since 2020, to lift the Calcutta Cup high above his head. The skipper’s trophy lift was accompanied by rather appropriate music, as Sam Tinnesz’ high tempo track “Legends are Made” blared around the home of English Rugby.
The DJ timed the tune to perfection, as when the Saracen lock lifted the iconic piece of silverware to an eruption of applause, the key lyric of the song blared through the PA system. Itoje is off to a fine start as England captain, with the second row racking up his second consecutive home win at the helm of his side.
4. Double injury blow in Steve Borthwick’s back-row
Steve Borthwick will be eager to enter the fallow week, as he lost two hard-hitting back rowers to injury against Scotland. The first man to fall from the fray was number eight Tom Willis, who sustained a nasty looking clash of heads with Ellis Genge. Willis was withdrawn for a HIA shortly before the half-time break, with Ben Curry awarded an earlier introduction than first expected at the Allianz.
It was announced around the PA system that Willis would not be returning, and sat out the second half of the match after a failed HIA. Also, Tom Curry was taken out of the action after a clattering hit into Zander Fagerson. The double tackle was the optimum of putting his body on the line, as along with Maro Itoje’s rip on the ball, Fagerson lost possession in a dangerous area.
Tom Curry was replaced by Chandler Cunningham-South at the 46th minute, and the Harlequin had a tremendous impact off the bench. Curry limped off to the sidelines, with an England medic supporting his weight, in what could have a problematic impact upon the rest of the Six Nations.
5. Notable cameo for Ted Hill’s first England cap since 2021
It was a late call to arms for Ted Hill, as the Bath man was a late inclusion in Steve Borthwick’s squad throughout this past training week. Hill was named on the bench on Thursday, after Borthwick initially named his squad on Tuesday. The Bath man was named amongst the replacements after George Martin was withdrawn from the match, as the Leicester Tigers lock sustained a knee injury.
Hill had heavy praise during the week, with Maro Itoje likening the forward to ‘Superman’, as he dons Clark Kent like spectacles before flying into action. Hill had a brief cameo at the very end of the match, with the lock entering the fold upon the 79th minute, with Ollie Chessum making way at second row. Hill made only his third England cap, in what was his first Test appearance since the 2021 Summer Test match against the United States.
ENGLAND: 16
TRIES: 1 (Freeman 8′)
CONVERSIONS: 1 (M. Smith 8′)
PENALTIES: 3 (M. Smith 55′, 66′, F. Smith 70′)
DROP GOALS: 0
YELLOW CARDS: 0
RED CARDS: 0
15. Marcus Smith 14. Tommy Freeman 13. Ollie Lawrence 12. Henry Slade 11. Ollie Sleightholme 10. Fin Smith 9. Alex Mitchell 1. Ellis Genge 2. Luke Cowan-Dickie 3. Will Stuart 4. Maro Itoje 5. Ollie Chessum 6. Tom Curry 7. Ben Earl 8. Tom Willis
16. Jamie George 17. Fin Baxter 18. Joe Heyes 19. Ted Hill 20. Chandler Cunningham-South 21. Ben Curry 22. Harry Randall 23. Elliot Daly
SCOTLAND: 15
TRIES: 3 (White 4′, Jones 19′, van der Merwe 79′)
CONVERSIONS: 0
PENALTIES: 0
DROP GOALS: 0
YELLOW CARDS: 0
RED CARDS: 0
15. Blair Kinghorn 14. Kyle Rowe 13. Huw Jones 12. Tom Jordan 11. Duhan van der Merwe 10. Finn Russell 9. Ben White 1. Pierre Schoeman 2. David Cherry 3. Zander Fagerson 4. Jonny Gray 5. Grant Gilchrist 6. Jamie Ritchie 7. Rory Darge 8. Jack Dempsey
16. Ewan Ashman 17. Jamie Bhatti 18. Will Hurd 19. Sam Skinner 20. Gregor Brown 21. Matt Fagerson 22. Jamie Dobie 23. Stafford McDowall
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