England edged by France in seven-try thriller
A 79th minute penalty saw France beat England 33-31 in Lyon.
Tries from Ollie Lawrence (2), Marcus Smith and Tommy Freeman, as well as 11 points from the boot of George Ford was not enough, as France edged the Test courtesy of tries from Nolann Le Garrec, Leo Barre and Gael Fickou, in addition to 18 points from Thomas Ramos.
Steve Borthwick's side came into the contest with three wins from four games; they opened their campaign with victories over Italy and Wales before a defeat to Scotland in Edinburgh was followed by late drama at Twickenham as they downed Ireland in round four. The loss in Lyon confirmed a third place finish in the 2024 Guinness Six Nations Championship.
A frantic start to the final round Test in Groupama Stadium saw France play expansively, putting width on the ball at every opportunity, and threatening the English line - but their defence weathered the pressure. Ellis Genge got the better of opposite man Uini Atonio at scrum time on 11 minutes, and referee Angus Gardner awarded the visitors a penalty, which Ford duly sent through the uprights for a 0-3 lead.
Ramos was on hand shortly after to level the affair with a penalty of his own, before a near length of the field counter-attack led to scrum-half Le Garrec's try under the sticks, and a seven-point French lead after the successful conversion.
Ramos nudged another two penalties as half time approached, making it 16-3, but England hit back emphatically in the final play of the first half. Off a five-metre line out, Henry Slade took the ball to the line before firing a pass into the path of Lawrence - who hit a gap in the French line, shrugged off the tackle of Gael Fickou, and went through to score. Ford's extras made it 16-10.
The stats at half time showed a dominant French performance, as the hosts boasted more metres, carries, defenders beaten and clean breaks. The Match Centre highlighted Lawrence as a standout for England, making 33 metres with his five carries, and beating two defenders.
Lawrence started the second half how he ended the first - with a try. England's tempo was rapid, as Mitchell got the visitors playing flat to the line - Sam Underhill was sent through a gap. He offloaded to Earl who was brought down just shy of the line, but Mitchell recycled quickly and found Lawrence on the blindside - the centre wrestled his way over - Ford added the conversion.
And England had a third try minutes later - a strike move off a 35-metre line out saw Genge tip onto Earl, who burst through the French line before finding Smith. The Harlequin danced around Damian Penaud to claim his 11th Test try, and Ford's conversion gave England an 8-point advantage.
A quick fire double from Les Bleues put them back in the match - first full back Leo Barré crossed after some neat offloading, before a mistake at an English lineout was hacked forward, claimed by Penaud and offloaded to Fickou for the score. Ramos' successful extras made it 30-24.
Freeman scored England's fourth try with five minutes remaining in the match and Ford continued his 100% record off the tee, nailing the conversion from the touchline, to give the visitors a 30-31 lead, but a 80th minute Ramos penalty confirmed a French win 33-31.
Teams
England
15. George Furbank, 14. Tommy Freeman, 13. Henry Slade, 12. Ollie Lawrence, 11. Elliot Daly, 10. George Ford, 9. Alex Mitchell, 1. Ellis Genge, 2. Jamie George - captain, 3. Dan Cole, 4. Maro Itoje, 5. George Martin, 6. Ollie Chessum, 7. Sam Underhill, 8. Ben Earl.
Replacements
16. Theo Dan, 17. Joe Marler, 18. Will Stuart, 19. Ethan Roots, 20. Alex Dombrandt, 21. Danny Care, 22. Marcus Smith, 23. Manu Tuilagi.
France
1. C. Baille, 2. J. Marchand, 3. U. Atonio, 4. T. Flament, 5. E. Meafou, 6. F. Cros, 7. C. Ollivon, 8. G. Alldritt, 9. N. Le Garrec, 10. T. Ramos, 11. L. Bielle Biarrey, 12. N. Depoortere, 13. G. Fickou, 14. D. Penaud, 15. L. Barré.
Replacements
16. P. Mauvaka, 17. S. Taofifenua, 18. G. Colombe, 19. R. Taofifenua, 20. A. Roumat, 21. P. Boudehent, 22. M. Lucu, 23. Y. Moefana.
Fixtures & Results
France 33 - 31 England
