Moribund at the opening of this World Cup, England found some color to finally qualify for the sixth semi-final in its history after being scared until the end against the reactionary Fijians (30-24 ) Sunday in Marseille.
Owen Farrell decisive at the end of the match
But he will undoubtedly have to find other recipes than a reliable scorer (Owen Farrell) to hope to beat on Saturday at the Stade de France the winner of the clash between France and South Africa proposed in the evening (9 p.m.) on the Saint-Denis grass. Two opponents with whom they have scores to settle: the spanking inflicted by the Blues at Twickenham in the Six Nations Tournament in March (53-10) and the correction in the final of the 2019 World Cup in Japan (32-12) by the Springboks .
“In Fiji, the sick come back to life when we win,” Seremaïa Baï, Fijian assistant coach, explained this week. But during this 2023 World Cup, it is indeed the XV de la Rose which resurrected itself by leaving its group D undefeated before erasing the humiliation suffered at the end of August in its lair of Twickenham, when it bowed for the first time in its history (30-22) against the “Flying Fijians” during the last preparation match. Steve Borthwick’s men, however, scared themselves until the end, letting the Fijians come back to their level (24-24) ten minutes from the final whistle.
After two almost copy-pasted attempts from their centers, Tuilagi (14) then Marchant (23), in bulldozer mode, it was the foot of the fly-half Farrell who furnished the scoreboard. And the Fijians seemed too inconsistent to really disturb them, with the only flash of magic in the first half being this pass between the legs of the opener Botitu for Mata’s try (28th), recovering a trailing ball on the ground about ten meters from the English line.
Five minutes of madness for the Fijians
But in the space of five minutes, everything almost changed for the XV de la Rose. Strong try from pillar Ravai (64), then another try from opener Botitu, after a superb full-field breakthrough from his second line Nasilasila (69): with the two transformations, the Fijians were back on level terms.
And England had conceded in a single match as many tries (3) as since the start of the World Cup, while its defense seemed in place… But it was ultimately the foot of opener Owen Farrell, with a drop first (72) then a final penalty (77), which sent England to the semi-final, under the gaze of the Princess of Wales Kate. A Farrell who has taken a step further compared to the legend Jonny Wilkinson as top scorer in the history of the XV de la Rose (1,206 points compared to 1,179 now).
“We were in control for the vast majority of the time, but there was a sequence where they scored tries in quick succession that only they could score,” commented Steve Borthwick after the match: “But I I’m happy with the way my players handled it afterwards.” “I’m a little speechless,” conceded Simon Raiwalui, the Fiji coach: “But I couldn’t be more proud of the boys. They’ve built something for the next generation, foundations on which we can build . We are working on the long term, for the 2027 and 2031 World Cups.”
We therefore arrived in the semi-final, thanks to a favorable draw and a group D which had not offered him any strong opponent, except a combative Argentina who also qualified in the semi-finals after her exploit against the Welsh on Saturday, the English therefore have a week to progress further. And hope to get a fifth place in the final. If the odds of the bookmakers will undoubtedly not be on their side, the figures are more reassuring: England have only been beaten once in their five semi-finals, in 1995, defeated 45-29 by Jonah Lomu’s All Blacks. And they beat France in 2003 and 2007…