Look how smug this guy looks in his picture. Maybe deservedly so, as George Ford brought his club form to the international stage and the midfield just wasn't there for England against Scotland. Some have attricuted this to Farrell just taking the ball up and being too physical, but he only got 3 carries and Joseph only got 4. Ford just isn't playing well enough to warrant wearing the 10 shirt, and Farrell is.The dream right now is Farrell at 10 with Slade at 12, but with Slade's injury, it seems to me that Devoto is the next best thing. We suggested this partnership before the match but understood it would be a bit of a gamble for Jones. It wouldn't be as much of a gamble next week, not only because it appears to be the better partnership, as Devoto mirrors Slade, but with Italy as the opponents Jones will feel he can push the boat out a bit more. We'll have our fingers crossed here at Four Balls HQ.
2) Haskell deserves his spot... but maybe not at 7
Haskell put in a really solid performance, and helped England earn exactly what they wanted, a tough win over a Scottish side high on confidence. Fortunately this Scottish side lacks real quality, and we didn't see how Haskell would have fared against a world-class out-and-out openside. He did perform well enough to keep a first team place though, and has seriously cast doubt on Robshaw's spot in the side. England need to introduce a young openside as soon as possible, and Jack Clifford, Will Fraser and Matt Kvesic are all queuing up for their starting spot. It was Scotland's lack of quality that allowed England to look good in the absence of a true 7, they managed 7 turnovers from all around the pack, with Dan Cole, Joe Launchbury, Billy Vunipola and Mako Vunipola all capable of covering for the lack of a player like Kvesic. England need to introduce a new 7 as soon as possible or risk ending up in a similar situation to the World Cup - unable to compete with the best.
3) Billy Vunipola could be a world class 8
Only Kruis really challenged Billy V for his MOTM award, but the storming performance from the number 8 was outstanding, and now people are seriously realising the potential of this man, and it's incredible to think he is still just 23 years old, yet leads the side in such an experienced manner and always gives a decent performance no matter how his teammates are faring. The likes of Waldrom and Morgan have been vying for Billy's place in the past, but now it looks like the main challenges will be coming from Josh Beaumont and in the near future Nathan Hughes. However, whilst both have been in brilliant form and look like fantastic players, the way that Billy is playing makes him almost untouchable for the moment, and he is stamping his authority on the international scene.
The win was crucial, and the manner of it will have pleased Eddie Jones greatly. Strong set-pieces (14/15 successful lineouts, 11/12 for scrums), a solid performance from the captain Dylan Hartley, and no lack of intensity at all, even if it doesn't make you any friends, as Owen Farrell found out when he gave Laidlaw a little push in the back for shielding the ball out and obstructing him. It may not have been the England side that took to the field to destroy France in exhilerating fashion at the tail end of last year's 6 Nations, but it's a good indication of where England are going, although they still need just that bit extra...
5) There is still a lot of work to be done
There is no doubt that Jones will be very happy with the win against the Scottish, but the feelings for English fans will be one more of relief. That performance won't cut it against the Irish or the Welsh, and whilst the English secured that all important win, they now need to prove they can go and win big against Italy, a side that came so close to taking the scalp of Guy Novès's France. The most important thing was achieved, yes, and Eddie Jones is in the process of bringing back the strong set piece and gritty style of play, but the quality England have in the backs needs to be used. The ball was kicked out of hand 41 times by the English team on Saturday, often needlessly and again that might come back to having 2 10s in the back line. Daly will be so desperate to get his chance in the team, and show what he can do with ball in hand, running through the opposition. Devoto should be in there too, and although there are concerns about playing an inexperienced 12 and 13, the next match is against Italy, a side that we should comfortably beat as we prove year-in year-out, regardless of their performance against France. They themselves had 10 uncapped players in their 6 Nations squad at the beginning of the tournament, and now it is England's opportunity to turn to a different back row and expand on the positives we saw in the first week.
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