England 19-7 New Zealand: Who were the top performers in semi-final win?
- Published
Rugby World Cup final |
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Venue: Yokohama International Stadium Date: Saturday, 2 November Kick-off: 09:00 GMT |
Coverage: Listen to live radio commentary on BBC Radio 5 Live and follow live text commentary on the BBC Sport website and app. |
England are into the World Cup final for the first time in 12 years after seeing off New Zealand in Yokohama.
Eddie Jones' side produced an outstanding display in the 19-7 victory to inflict the All Blacks' first loss at the tournament since 2007.
But who were the standout performers from England's impressive semi-final victory?
Former England fly-half and BBC Radio 5 Live pundit Paul Grayson has rated each player's performance below.
Backs
Elliot Daly: (8) His ghosting outside break created the first try. Coped well with the move to the wing after Jonny May went off.
Anthony Watson: (8) Flashing feet and a constant menace. Got the better of George Bridge and shut down the Kiwi winger in defence.
Jonny May: (8) Dominated Sevu Reece and exposed New Zealand's weak link in the back three. A master of his craft in the air.
Manu Tuilagi: (9) His best game for England, a constant threat in attack and stifled New Zealand's wide play with his clever defence. A world-class performance.
Owen Farrell: (8) Ran some great lines in the opening quarter and helped George Ford put width on the attack. Gave up the goal-kicking duties after a bang to his leg.
George Ford: (9) The man of the moment. When the questions were asked George Ford stood up. Took over kicking duties to put England out of sight and orchestrated a masterful kicking display to squeeze the life out of the All Blacks. Seized the day.
Ben Youngs: (8) Fantastic all-round display, maintained tempo when England were on attack, and unlucky to have his try disallowed. The best he's been for a while.
Forwards
Mako Vunipola: (9) Passed, carried, hit, scrummaged and lifted with equal aplomb. He is essential to England's attacking plan.
Jamie George (8): England found space for their jumpers and George found them with a superb throwing display. Dynamism in the loose in attack and a defensive organiser.
Kyle Sinckler: (8) A dynamic display from the barnstorming tight-head, re-writing the rule book on what's capable from that side of the scrum. Hobbled off with injury.
Courtney Lawes: (8) A constant menace in defence and carried the ball strongly in the opening period. Reliable as ever and called a superb line-out.
Maro Itoje: (9) Back to his brilliant best - disciplined, influential, accurate and leads from the front. A top-class performer.
Tom Curry: (9) Relentless doesn't even get close. In attack and defence he seemed to be everywhere. Control of the blindside out of the top drawer. Not seen a performance like that since Richard Hill graced the field.
Sam Underhill: (9) Carved out of granite, Underhill's thunderous tackling and strangulation of the breakdown were vital to England's success. The modern day open-side machine.
Billy Vunipola: (8) Devastating ball carrier, disciplined and accurate in defence. His two flankers afford him the space to do some damage carrying the ball and his big brother keeps him happy.
Replacements
Henry Slade: (8) Comfortable in more than one position - settled in at full-back and made a try-saving hit on Sevu Reece. An influential player in England's 23.
Willi Heinz: (7) An easy 20 minutes for scrum-half Heinz because England were so dominant. He was accurate, kept the machine ticking on.
Dan Cole: (7) Veteran tight-head prop, called into action earlier than expected. A rock in the scrum, solid in defence, even had a couple of trundles. Nice cameo.
George Kruis: (7) Added to England's total dominance up front. England's pack finished with total domination.
Luke Cowan-Dickie: (7) Watched Jamie George put in a massive performance, must have enjoyed riding the chariot home.
Joe Marler: (7) Prop gave George Ford a big hug before the game and Ford had the game of his life. Well done, Joe.
Mark Wilson: (8) Gritty doesn't cover it. A key turnover when the game was in the balance maintained England's superiority. Mental strength as well as physical.
Jonathan Joseph: (7) A good day to make sure everybody got on the field. Joseph adds a lot but didn't have time to do much.