England pays dear price for Twickers win
NEWS: Ollie Lawrence will miss England’s Six Nations finale against Wales and could be sidelined for the rest of the season after suffering an Achilles injury in a 47-24 victory over Italy.
The Bath centre is set to undergo scans and see a specialist after appearing to catch his foot in the Twickenham turf just eight minutes into Sunday’s match.
England coach Steve Borthwick nodded during his post-match press conference when asked if Lawrence would miss the Cardiff clash with struggling Wales on March 15.
“It’s an Achilles injury,” said Borthwick.
“Fingers crossed it is not quite as severe as we fear it might be.”
England flyhalf Fin Smith said the loss of Lawrence was a bitter blow.
“When you see one of your best mates potentially losing the chance to go on a [British and Irish] Lions tour [of Australia] and what was bound to be a massive year for him, it breaks your heart,” said Northampton playmaker Smith.
“We are all absolutely devastated for him. I’ve got everything crossed that the scans say it is not too bad, but it is not looking brilliant. He is devastated.”
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England ran in seven tries for a bonus-point win over Italy as they moved above Ireland into second place, just one point behind leaders France, heading into the ‘Super Saturday’ climax of the championship when all the teams play on the same day.
To be crowned Six Nations champions for the first time in five years, Borthwick’s men need to win in Wales and hope Scotland can surprise France in Paris.
Tom Willis, Tommy Freeman and Ollie Sleightholme scored first-half tries, all converted by Fin Smith. Italy responded with touchdowns from Ange Capuozzo and Ross Vintcent, with Paolo Garbisi’s boot ensuring the Azzurri were in touch at the end of a first half where England led 21-17.
Marcus Smith, an early replacement for Lawrence, and Tom Curry scored tries during the third quarter as England established a decisive lead.
“I was really pleased with way the players adapted to an early disruption with the Ollie Lawrence injury against a really tricky opponent who are very streetwise,” said Borthwick.
“In that context, to get seven tries was a really good performance.
Wales may be on a national-record losing streak of 16 successive Test defeats, but England captain Maro Itoje said there would be no complacency from his side when they kicked off at the Principality Stadium.
“I have been fortunate enough to play there numerous times, and I know exactly how difficult it is,” he said. “Wales versus England is a humungous fixture.”
Sunday’s defeat meant Italy have now lost all 32 of their Tests against England, with Azzurri skipper Michele Lamoro saying: “We had some brilliant moments but we switched off in periods. At the start of the second-half we conceded two clear opportunities and they (England) are a great team, so they took them.”
