Heroes right to the end

13 April 2012

Say what you like about Jonny Wilkinson, England's golden boy did it again last night when his late, late drop goal killed off France to book a place in next Saturday's World Cup final.

Wilkinson's 74th-minute penalty had given England an 11-9 lead but it was his drop goal, less than two minutes from time, that effectively settled this intense encounter.

England celebrate at the final whistle

Now the world champions stand 80 minutes away from becoming the first team ever to win back-to-back world titles.

On the very same pitch at the Stade de France four weeks ago they went down 36-0 to South Africa in the pool stages and were quoted as 50-1 to win the World Cup.

Last night they did what teams are not supposed to do in international rugby. They beat France, who put out favourites New Zealand last week, in Paris and now anything is possible for a group of players universally written off both before and during this tournament.

Forget about 2003, Martin Johnson and Clive Woodward, magnificent though that was. If England somehow close the deal next week against either South Africa or Argentina, the feat will be far greater than four years ago.

At the end, all France could do was watch and, in the case of Sebastien Chabal, cry as England performed the victory lap.Nobody could quite believe what had taken place.

The early plan was to quieten the partisan crowd but not even the most optimistic English supporter would have expected the manner in which they achieved their goal.

When Andy Gomarsall sent his leftfooted kick from halfway towards the French line, centre-turned-full-back Damien Traille waited as the ball bobbled and bounced. In the corner of his eye he would have seen Josh Lewsey sprinting down the wing. When the ball suddenly sat up, it was the winger who pounced, snatching it out of Traille's hands to score.

Sebastien Chabal of France leaves the field in tears

The clock read one minute 15 seconds.

Wilkinson missed the conversion from rance responded with a flurry of attacks that led to an eighth-minute penalty converted by Lionel Beauxis after Nick Easter was offside.

Despite the shock of their start, France began to play with confidence, and England were required to tackle frantically. A second Beauxis penalty, from just inside the England half, nudged them ahead in the 17th minute and, suddenly, France were beginning to justify heavy favouritism.

England's cause, on the face of it, hardly improved when Fabien Pelous limped off in the 25th minute, merely to be replaced by the French national hero, Chabal.

Wilkinson, despite an intensive,two-hour kicking practice on Thursday with all six match balls,then failed with a drop goal attempt and sent a penalty wide from inside his own half.

When Lewsey appeared to twist his ankle in the last minute of the first half, with the inexperienced Dan Hipkiss replacing him and forcing Mathew Tait to move out to the wing, the omens were not good.

Still,as England ran purposefully back to their half-time dressing room, they were just 6-5 behind.

This became four points three minutes after the interval when Easter, harshly, was judged to have come in from the side of a ruck, and Beauxis slotted home his third penalty.

Then England,and Wilkinson,started to play. A turnover enforced by Lewis Moody nearly resulted in a try in the corner for Tait, but with the French already penalised Wilkinson sent the resulting penalty between the posts from an acute angle to reduce the arrears to a point.

In the 50th minute, France made a double substitution. Off went captain Raphael Ibanez and Beauxis, and on came the dynamic reserve hooker, Dimitri Szarzewski and the mercurial Frederic Michalak,whose wonder-pass last week against New Zealand set up France's winning try.

England replied by sending on Joe Worsley for Moody and then replacing captain Phil Vickery withMatt Stevens.

Wilkinson smacked the left-hand post with a driven, right-footed drop goal attempt on the hour, and then Robinson, earning his 50th international cap, produced a trademark,jinking 30-metre run only to be brought down close to the French line.

It looked all over for England when Julien Bonnaire punched Yannick Jauzion's cross-field punt back into the hands of Vincent Clerc and the winger charged towards the English line. A try looked a certainty but Worsley's tap tackle brought him down.

The game had now entered its final phase and both sides, desperately tired, knew the next score might settle it. Robinson was once again probing the French defence inside their 22 when Szarzewski felled him with a high tackle. Wilkinson made no mistake from in front of the posts and England were finally back in the lead.

It took sub Toby Flood and Paul Sackey to stop Chabal in full flight and from the next English attack Wilkinson's high, lopping, left-foot drop goal took England into fantasyland.

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