Saturday, September 24, 2011

Pool B - England v Romania

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England find their Mojo


Romania and England scrummage during the IRB 2011 Rugby World Cup Pool B match between England and Romania at Otago Stadium on September 24, 2011 in Dunedin, New Zealand.
( September 23, 2011 - Photos by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images AsiaPac)
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Wings Mark Cueto and Chris Ashton both claimed hat-tricks as England smashed Romania 67-3 in Dunedin on Saturday.
England ran in a total of ten tries in a woefully one-sided encounter under the roof of the Otago Stadium.
The result moves England five points clear of Scotland - who face Argentina on Sunday - at the top of the group, virtually assuring their place in the quarter-finals.
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Most pleasing for manager Martin Johnson will be the massive improvement in England's distribution and option taking, with nine out of ten tries being scored by back-line players (even Croft's try came out wide).
There will still be elements that will concern Johnson, notably the needless penalties England conceded early on which undermined an otherwise bright start.
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Moment of the match: It took fifteen minutes for England to get their first try but from the moment Ashton cut through the Romanian line to put Cueto clear, the game was all but over. Having missed the wins over Argentina and Georgia due to a back injury, Cueto marked his return in emphatic fashion. England replaced Wilkinson with Toby Flood at half-time - a sign that the struggle for the number ten jersey is far from over.
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Louis Deacon of England out jumps Cristian Constantin Petre of Romania
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next test:
9-28
Romania v Georgia
Palmerston North
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10-1
England v Scotland
Auckland
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