TOP level sport is all about fine margins.
We saw at Twickenham on Saturday just how fine those margins can be.
England’s decision to go for the corner against Wales rather than kick a penalty has been analysed over and over by pundits across the globe.
The general consensus is that England made the wrong move but I’m not so sure there is a right answer.
For what it’s worth, I will at least applaud England for having the belief in themselves to try to win the match from the position they were in.
They weren’t prepared to settle for a draw assuming Owen Farrell had gone on to split the posts from the acute angle he would have been faced with
It wasn’t a rash decision that had no chance of succeeding.
Captain Chris Robshaw gathered his players together with a sense of purpose and they committed to their call 100 per cent.
Just like Japan did against South Africa to immensely dramatic effect.
In the end, it wasn’t the decision hat undid England, it was their poor execution from the resulting line out, coupled with resolute Welsh defending that saw the host nation’s hopes bulldozed into touch.
England looked to seize the initiative to ensure their tournament destiny remained in their own hands.
It didn’t work and now they need help from elsewhere with other results.
But imagine if they had opted for the penalty or, worse still, missed it under the pressure that is increasingly mounting on them.
No doubt there would have been people queuing up to make accusations of negative play.
To some extent, they were damned if they did and damned if they didn’t.
In any case, at best the three points would have earned them was a draw and Stuart Lancaster’s side would still have needed a result against Australia this weekend.
Nothing has changed in that regard. They still need to beat Australia.
Disappointing? Yes, but there’s no point dwelling on what has happened.
They must move on, focus and ensure they do everything possible to rectify the situation.
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