I thought chase started to get a bit frustrated in the second half. His handling was not as it should be and he lost concentration for the tap penalty try. Difficult decisions need to be made in the halves and that will not be made playing against Wales. But the outside backs and most of the pack looked good. Just those halves. Who do you pick? Because Sinny was not great either.

Surely Widdop plays next week?

The French turn the lights off and upset Eddie, how many times have I wanted to do the same

Would anyone else play leeds' loose forward at stand off instead of melbourne's stand off?

Brough & Widdop should have been the halves but now we're stuck with Chase at scrum half. Let's hope that McNamara comes into a little sense in the next few days and puts Widdop in at stand off.

There's no place for Sinfield, top class football teams can't carry a traditional ball playing loose forward any more it's now three back rowers who carry the ball strongly and tackle all day.

Carvel has to come onto the bench.

Chase is a stand off for a start, but of course they looked disjointed. It was their first match together ffs!

Good hit out. France were motivated and aggressive, this was their 'grand final'.

The only tweak i'd make is widdop to 6 and sinfield to 13.

I like the make up of this team, especially once the rustiness is gone.Theres pace and skill in the right places and then combined with the engine room.

I thought Tomkins had a poor game tonight. I know he was supposed to have an injury carried over from the playoffs but in that case he should never have played. It was a case of getting rid of the ball as soon as he got it. Widdop at least went forward which Tomkins hardly managed at all.

northernsportsreport.wordpress.c ... s-england/ Match report written by me. Any feedback is most welcome.

northernsportsreport.wordpress.c ... s-england/ Match report written by me. Any feedback is most welcome.

Why should brough and widdop have been the halves?

You have the MOS and grand final winning SO in the halves. I can certainly see why mcnamara went for them. Oh you come on here, the big man decked out with your hindsight 'this should have been, that should have been done', well no deal.

Mcnamara knows more than you and I trust his judgement.

On his kick returns I only recall one offload, and that was his pass to briscoe. Tomkins is so quick and elusive you always feel he will do something on kick returns.

Chase had a good first half and we looked dangerous down that left side. He then went and controlled things in the middle as Sinfield went missing.

Don't think I can put my finger on one player that didn't play well or didn't make mistakes. Heighington had a great game in defence, I think and Reed looks dangerous. I think he needs a better winger than Hall.

We do look like we're missing a recognised scrum-half. Chase is not a kicker and likes to be the mercurial player than the guy controlling things.

Most of his post stems from the fact it's Rangi Chase.

Had it been a Wakefield player, however, I really doubt he would have been as scathing in his criticism.

You know what, I never factored that in when making my judgment!

You're a genius



Not

Good luck with that!

It's not hindsight when you said on numerous occasions for weeks before the event.

Don't talk crap Fully and you know me better than that.

I've also been as critical of Sinfield and he's nowt to do with Cas.

I'm watching the game as an England fan, Wakefield allegiances don't come into it as far as I'm concerned, obviously you and a couple of others can't say the same.

Double

Clearly. Suggest you go back and read my post (on the game) again.

Chase got frustrated because he could not do the big play, which lead to him throwing bad passes and being at fault concentration wise with the tap penalty try. Try not to be too biased, because he was poor imo. Chase had every opportunity to express himself today with Sinfield in the team as the organiser. I hope he can turn it around, but today Chase was not good. Quite ironic you had a go at a Wakey supporter for being biased in analysis.

Chase was nearest defender to the French scorers of the last two French tries and they just went past him as if he wasn't there. You can't afford that against the Aussie and New Zealand. He's too used to being the big fish in the small pond, where he can dip in and out of games and lose focus for a while. Players at the bigger clubs are used to not losing that focus.

I'm not interested in your view of the game it was your view on me that I commented on, also where in my posts am I "scathing" in my assessment of Chase.

So out of a full 80 mins, you pick on two bad passes, one which the man actually caught. With regard to the tackle, the whole defence was slow and there was another man at fault too, not just Chase. Read my post again as well. I'm pretty sure I said he had a good FIRST half.

There is no bias in there at all; the fact you even suggested that is ludicrous considering I was hardly waxing lyrical.

That for me was the problem with chase today. He is class no doubt. But seemed to lose concentration a times today. Aus and NZ with exploit that.

It was typical GB/England stuff tonight. Players being played out of position and looking like they were.

When are the coaches going to learn and play players in their natural positions?

We're 'stuck' with Chase seems to imply he was a last resort selection, that he isn't as good as his PEERS think he is and that his place in the side is a forgone conclusion.

That's what the comment implied to me anyway. Apologies if that wasn't your intention.

Contrastingly, I think he demonstrated his quality in the first half with some good passes and spreading the play with quality down the left. The second half of the game he was frustrated but I think that's generally because the French defence was so physical and he didn't have the space to impose himself.

That, and he was badly lacking a colleague in the halves at the side of him. We need a kicker and an organiser. Sinfield always seems too 'restrained', to use a word, in the halves.