England made “too many mistakes” and allowed Scotland to score “too easily”, head coach Steve Borthwick said after the Six Nations defeat at Murrayfield.
Duane van der Merwe scores a stunning hat-trick as Scotland win 30-21 Ending England's 100% record.
“We know we weren't good enough today,” Borthwick told BBC One.
“We made too many mistakes to win the test match. We want to improve in the future.”
England held a 10-0 lead but defensive and handling mistakes were punished by Van der Merwe.
“We saw progress in some aspects of the game, but there were too many handling errors,” Borthwick added.
“We are trying to develop our attack but when you turn over so many balls it is very difficult to win a Test match against a team of Scottish quality.
Borthwick, who is rebuilding his side after leading England to third place at the World Cup, pointed to the team's inexperience compared to the stable line-up introduced by Scotland's Gregor Townsend.
This was the first match in which England used the combination of fly-half George Ford and centers Ollie Lawrence and Henry Slade.
Fly-half Finn Russell has played for Scotland alongside Sione Tuipulotu and Huw Jones since the 2023 Six Nations.
“Scotland's 10, 12 and 13 have started dozens of times, but this is the first time our 10, 12 and 13 have started together.
“It's going to take some effort, and we know that.”
England's next match is against Six Nations leaders Ireland at Twickenham before completing their trip to France.
Borthwick's side must win at least one of those games to avoid ending the Six Nations for the fourth year in a row with just two wins out of five.
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Borthwick's team were behind at half-time against Italy and Wales in the opening two matches, but came back to win.
Captain Jamie George said the opening game at Murrayfield was the “best” he had seen his team play in “a while”.
Full-back George Firbank opened the scoring and Van der Merwe completed a hat-trick, including a solo try from the middle.
“We came into this situation feeling really good,” George said.
“In the game, we lacked the fundamentals and made life difficult for ourselves, but the first 20 minutes of the game were probably the best I've seen us play in a while.
“We had no problems playing in the first half, but we were a bit loose with the ball. We gave the ball to Finn Russell and Van der Merwe and they were able to create some magic and really They did that. “
turning point
It was Van der Merwe's second try that decided the goal.
With England leading 10-7, the winger picked up a loose ball halfway and raced around England's Ben Earl before accelerating clear and finishing brilliantly in the corner.
“To dance around Ben Earl and sprint down the touchline knowing it's going to be a close game takes a moment of magic and players standing up. He did that,” Monnier told the BBC. Told in One.
“Not only was it a great finish, but I don't think England mentally recovered from that.”
