Scotland 31-20 England
Jones (2), Ritchie and White with tries; Arundell sees red
Certain wins feel bigger than others and, for Scotland, this result will reverberate for ages. Reclaiming the Calcutta Cup is always sweet but convincingly ending England’s 12-Test unbeaten record was a glorious bonus. For Gregor Townsend and his side, under pressure after their opening round defeat in Rome, this was some riposte to their critics
Ultimately, it was not even close. Two tries by Huw Jones, a hard-nosed collective effort from the Scottish pack and a typically artful display from Finn Russell were simply too much for an England team who had dared to believe this week that their previous tartan traumas were behind them. Instead, they were outplayed and tactically out-thought by Townsend and his coaching staff and have now won just two of the past nine meetings between the nations.
Scotland were rampant at times in the first half, with sharp tries by Jones, Jamie Ritchie and Ben White giving them a 24-10 interval cushion. From England’s perspective, there was little improvement thereafter with Jones’s second try, originating from a charged-down George Ford drop-goal attempt, effectively sealing the visitors’ fate.
