Image source, Getty Images
- Author, Mantej Mann
- Role, BBC Sport journalist
England’s 21-year wait for an away win over New Zealand goes on but Steve Borthwick’s side have shown encouraging signs of progress on their summer tour.
It began with a comfortable win over Japan last month before moving to New Zealand, where England narrowly lost both Tests against the All Blacks.
So where do England stand after their thrilling tour of New Zealand and how can they close the gap when they welcome the All Blacks to Twickenham in November?
‘Progress’ for England but ‘small moments’ matter
England were in touching distance of a first win in New Zealand since 2003 in both Tests and they will head home with a sense of disappointment.
Damian McKenzie kicked two second-half penalties to overturn a deficit in Dunedin before Beauden Barrett came off the bench to inspire a match-winning fightback in Auckland after England had led by four points.
Marcus Smith struggled from the tee in the Dunedin defeat, missing three of his five shots at goal, but he orchestrated England well from fly-half and his cross-field kick has become a potent weapon.
Smith changed the angle of attack to pick out Henry Slade in Tokyo before finding both wingers, Immanuel Feyi-Waboso and Tommy Freeman, with the same method to give England the half-time lead at Eden Park.
The 25-year-old has cemented his place in the England number 10 jersey and he says the series ultimately came down to fine margins.
“It was probably the small moments – a touch at the breakdown, a few wrong decisions on the edges from myself – that turned the tie in the All Blacks’ favour,” Smith told Sky Sports.
“When they’re ahead, they’re obviously a very successful team and it’s hard to wrestle momentum back.”
New Zealand had far more caps than the more youthful English visitors and their experience told when it mattered most, as full-back Barrett and prop Fletcher Newell came off the bench to shore up the backfield and the set-piece at Eden Park.
England, though, have shown great resilience and look a different team to the one beaten for the first time by Fiji in their final World Cup warm-up in August.
“We’re building something and the belief we have is growing. On another day we get the result here, or the result last week,” said Smith.
Speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live, Borthwick added: “I am immensely proud of these young men. I think the team is making progress.
“We ultimately got ourselves in positions to win both these Test matches and unfortunately have not been able to convert.
“Experience in international rugby is really important. I can’t accelerate experience but what you can accelerate is learning.
“This is an exciting young group that has got huge potential and I think with their immense work ethic and appetite to improve, there is a very high ceiling for them.”
Series can be ‘launchpad’ for England
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England have shown so much progress during a season in which they finished third at the World Cup and denied Ireland consecutive Six Nations Grand Slam titles.
One of the key criticisms thrown at Borthwick’s side before beating Ireland was their pragmatism in attack and what seemed to be a preference for kicking the ball for territory rather than putting it through the hands.
England dominated the first 20 minutes of the second half at Eden Park, but did not quite have the composure to see the game out and perhaps reverted to type on occasion by kicking away possession.
New Zealand head coach Scott Robertson says the visitors were “tough” but could have exposed their hosts in that critical period by retaining the ball better.
“I thought England could have run the ball a bit more,” he told BBC Radio 5 Live.
“They kicked it away a bit on the edge and we were quite relieved they did it because if they held on to it we were a bit narrow and we would have been in trouble.”
Defeat in New Zealand is nothing new for England, however, and perhaps the greatest positive for Borthwick will be the valuable experience gained by his young charges.
Former England fly-half Paul Grayson told the Rugby Union Daily podcast: “England should have won at least one of these Tests and they will be hurting from that, but as a launchpad for this team over the next few years, there is a lot of good stuff they can take from it.
“[Prop] Fin Baxter has earned hard minutes with a debut and then backing it up with a second Test at 22. Chandler Cunningham-South is 21 and George Martin is 23. To have been to New Zealand at this stage of their careers is gold dust and they will grow.
“It is about squad development and when they have everybody fit and a full squad to pick from, I think they can put a 23 together that will be competitive for any side in the world.”