Six Nations: England handle storm and Scotland to revive title hopes
- Eddie Jones’ men get their Six Nations campaign back on track
- England triumph in terrible conditions at a stormy Murrayfield
The filthy conditions had a huge impact on the match, which was played in relentless freezing rain driven by gusts of more than 80km/h. Storm Ciara, said to be the strongest to land in Britain in seven years, made the goalposts sway, flags snap, and the teams commit a ton of errors.
England deservedly led 3-0 after the lowest scoring half since 1988. Scotland drew even and the score remained tied for nearly 20 minutes until the 70th, when another error by Scotland captain Stuart Hogg proved fateful.
Hogg was letting a long chip by George Ford roll to his posts, and appeared to have it well covered, until it wickedly bounced up off his chin and he had to touch it down with his tummy. Instead of receiving a 22-metre dropout, Hogg conceded a five-metre scrum to England.
The previous weekend, Hogg spilled the ball over the try-line as Scotland lost to Ireland 19-12. That was careless. This time, he was unlucky.
