England's victory over Ireland was a statement in so many ways.
It was a statement to everyone in the camp, it was a statement to the doubters, it was a statement to the rugby world and it was a statement to the supporters.
I don't think anyone, from fans to pundits to the media, doubted that England could play like that. It was all about some amazing players who have played great games in the Premiership and for European clubs, but who have struggled in the white jersey.
The fans are very knowledgeable because they watch rugby every week, but they were frustrated because we weren't playing to our potential.
But wave after wave of excitement came, and even when Ireland seemed to be leading and winning, Twickenham was still buoyed by the way England were playing.
If his shirt was heavy against Scotland, it was light as a feather against Ireland.
I don't remember Twickenham being like that since 2012 when England beat the All Blacks. England captain Jamie George is a smart man and from the start of the campaign he was clear about what he wanted fans to be part of on this journey, including a longer distance to the stadium and making sure the music was appropriate. I will analyze everything that has been said.
That's all well and good, but if England are going to do that, they can still be seen as superstars by building a tunnel from the motorway to the stadium so fans don't see the players until they warm up. , will be hailed as a legend. That's how you play.
If you put yourself into the game with that intention and that desire and you end up winning, England fans will blow the roof off the stadium. It's not England who build the fort, it's the fans.
That stadium is going to be very intimidating to anyone else who steps onto that turf. This aura is created by you and it comes from the way you play rugby and win. Sometimes it's like yesterday, and sometimes it's shattered so thoroughly that it becomes like yesterday.
“You have to score tries to beat the best teams”
In the old games, Ireland would have been put in a chokehold and the way England were playing they wouldn't have been allowed to break out of their grip.
But they attacked with intent and added fuel to the fire with some outstanding individual performances. We weren't just talking about Ben Earl, we were talking about George Furbank, Immanuel Fay-Waboso, George Martin, Ollie Chetham and Ellis Genge.
The list of players who have influenced him is endless.
It all starts with Captain George wanting to play. He recognizes the talent in his team and he has to score tries to beat the best teams.
Head coach Steve Borthwick says the data-driven analysis of defending and kicking the ball to get into the right position is good enough, but he has just realized that he still has to attack and score tries. think.
They obviously changed their mindset and spent more time on offense. Change doesn't just happen in a few sessions.
Their training regime has definitely improved and it makes a big difference when you wake up in the morning and know you're practicing attacking rugby instead of defensively. Their energy was in stark contrast to what we had seen before.
It wasn't perfect by any stretch of the imagination, there's a lot of room for improvement, and they want to continue building on that.
The basics were set-pieces, lineouts and scrums, and England dominated Ireland by using Chessam on the wing and Martin and Maro Itoje in the second row. Ireland had nowhere to go.
It was vintage Steve Borthwick returning to his ultra-strong lineout knowledge. They could kick and touch at will, knowing he had a 30-40% chance of interfering with the Irish ball.
Ireland's defense is just at 6 and 7, unable to rush up as England attack with Martin, Chessam and Olly Lawrence, and if they fall back it will be England's pace and Firbank will be 13 It wreaked havoc on the channel. runner.
It was a difficult afternoon for Ireland to control England's wave attacks as everyone was a threat.
“Gibson Park moving to the wing was a mistake.''
I don't remember Ireland going through multiple stages. Usually they enter a double-digit rack, speed through it and then dive into the corner. They did it a few times on Saturday, but other than that England basically stopped them.
England's possession statistics were excellent and they had most of the ball.
England's defense on the periphery was very good and Ireland only got scraps. Then we saw injuries and disarray in the Irish backline throw their coordination slightly out of whack.
It was a big mistake to move scrum-half Jamison Gibson-Park to the wing after Ciaran Frawley was sent off injured.
He was far more effective than Conor Murray as a nine-year-old and was more exciting on the periphery. Ireland lost all its speed and momentum.
England's defense also worried me when they were rushing up, taking advantage of James Rowe's two tries, but looked disjointed on other occasions.
But thankfully they were more focused on stopping the ball at the source and their line speed to their first attacker was great.
Smith or Ford versus France?
England stumbled a bit as Ireland got back in front, but quickly gathered their heads and their final pass was relentless, with Marcus Smith scoring a drop goal to win the game.
We need to know if George Ford will feature in the next World Cup, but if England are going to play like that with intent, then the three fly-halves of Ford and Smith, Marcus and Finn All of them will be very capable.
How Marcus breaks through the line is a threat and a concern for opponents. I just want to see him become a very level-headed general. If he had that composure towards himself, he would be the number one option by a mile.
New Zealand's Dan Carter may have been an Ultimate 10 player capable of all sorts of magic: touchline penalties, bizarre drop goals, and over-the-line feeding dummies, but he lacked composure. was there. Everyone is watching.
I would like to see Marcus see a little more of that. Because when you add that to his vision and physical attributes, you're going to have a great superstar.
And finally, he mentioned Danny Care becoming the sixth Englishman to win 100 caps for his country. He has shown great longevity and has had an impact on English rugby.
Matt Dawson told BBC Sport's Mantej Mann.
