Rugby World Cup: England edge out Samoa in 18-17 victory and secure unbeaten status in Pool D

Tries from Ollie Chessum and Danny Care, plus three conversions from Owen Farrell, ultimately earned England victory; Farrell became England’s top points scorer; Samoa showed their strength with tries from Nigel Ah Wong and three conversions from Lima Sopoaga

It was an England performance to forget as they held off Samoa.

England maintained their unbeaten run at the Rugby World Cup after a late Danny Care try gave them an 18-17 victory over a strong Samoa side in Lille.

England got off to a good start as Ollie Chessum scored a try in the ninth minute, with Owen Farrell then adding a penalty in the 16th minute to become England’s top points scorer as they took a lead from 8-0.

However, Samoa fought back brilliantly, two tries from Nigel Ah Wong, both converted by Lima Sopoaga, gave them a solid 14-8 lead at the break and, with two more tries also ruled out, they were very much the team on your mind.

In the second half, a Sopoaga penalty increased Samoa’s advantage to 17-8 before England responded with a Farrell penalty, the England captain then allowing three points as he was stopped by the shot clock .

With the score at 17-11 for Samoa and Tumua Manu sent to the sin-bin, Care finally got England over the line for a converted try, his team then held on for the final five minutes to achieve victory and ensure invincibility. run in the group stages.

History of the match

Samoa showed their attacking prowess in the opening minutes but it was England who were first on the scoreboard, Joe Marchant emerging in midfield to feed Manu Tuilagi who used his strength to draw defenders , pass to Freddie Steward, then send Chessum to the corner.

Samoa’s Nigel Ah Wong was on fire in the first half as he scored a brace

Farrell then headed towards the posts in the 16th minute to seal a huge record by becoming England’s all-time top scorer, succeeding Jonny Wilkinson.

It didn’t take long for Samoa to finally get into the game with an incredible passage of play, Ah Wong finishing the move in the corner and Sopoaga adding the extras to make the score 8-7.

This try gave Samoa the momentum and after a huge chance thanks to some more silky passing, the penalty arrived. As they mauled from the lineout, Nerai Fumoi sent the cross kick into the corner which Ah Wong brilliantly collected and went down, Sopoaga converting once again and taking a 14-8 lead.

Duncan Paia’aua thought he was next for Samoa after a poor Alex Mitchell kick caused chaos, but the full-back’s effort was ruled out for a knock-on in the build-up , with Ah Wong’s potential hat-trick canceled out. moments later as his foot went into touch, giving them a 14-8 halftime lead.

Samoa started the second half with the same intent as the first and got their reward in the 48th minute when Sopoaga increased their advantage with a penalty, giving them a 17-8 lead with just over a half -time to play.

Steve Borthwick then made a big call to remove George Ford and move Farrell to fly-half, with Marcus Smith coming in at full-back and Steward and Marchant moving to wing and outside center respectively.

Owen Farrell took the reins in 10th within 40 seconds

England thought they had finally crossed the line in the 54th minute but Chessum’s second was ruled out for a double move, with Marchant then seeing his try ruled out minutes later for a forward pass.

Farrell tried to get his team back into the game by adding the penalty for a late shot to cut the deficit to six, but then three points were lost as, when another penalty came, he was clocked by the clock shots because he failed to do so. complete the conversion within 60 seconds.

A sweet yellow card for Manu as he took out Farrell in the air, then gave England another chance and, with a scrum straight across the Samoa line, Care found the gap and headed over. Farrell converted this time to give his team an 18-17 lead and they held on despite Samoa’s immense pressure for victory.

“It was disjointed on our part” – What they said

England captain Owen Farrell told ITV Sport…

“It was disjointed. It didn’t seem like the best on our part, but all the credit goes to Samoa.

“The way they came out and shot at us was hard to deal with at times.

“I’m happy that we found a way to come back, and I’m happy that when we weren’t at our best, we found a way to win.

“I always think about the match. It (England’s points record) is something I will think about in the future.”

And after?

England will now face Fiji or Australia on Saturday October 14 in Marseille, kick-off at 4 p.m.

Samoa are now out of the competition, with Argentina or Japan the team that will occupy second place in Pool D at the next stage.