France 48-46 England
Late penalty denies Ireland the championship
This has been a stunningly unpredictable Six Nations but no one saw this astonishing final reel coming. While France may have clinched the trophy for the second successive year England came within seconds of spoiling their pulsating last night party in a see-sawing game for the ages. In the end the hosts needed a last-gasp penalty from Thomas Ramos to secure the trophy, dashing Irish hopes of a sensational title heist.
It will go down among the most extraordinary chapters in the 120-year history of this fixture, ultimately securing back-to-back titles for France for the first time since 2007. They were particularly indebted to the brilliant Louis Bielle-Biarrey who surpassed himself by scoring four tries, condemning England to four losses in the same championship season for the first time in 50 years.
It also means that, statistically, this is England’s worst campaign since the Five Nations became Six but at the final whistle no one was dwelling on that. England had dramatically edged ahead courtesy of a 76th-minute try by Tommy Freeman only to concede one last penalty at a ruck 45 metres on the angle from their own posts. The outcome of the whole championship rested on Ramos’s shoulders but, to his credit, he never looked like missing.
