South Africa pulls off great escape to beat England and make Rugby World Cup final
England held off a spirited Argentina 26-23 at the Stade de France to take third place at the Rugby World Cup for a measure of consolation after the disappointment of their narrow semi-final defeat last week.
The boot of Owen Farrell proved the difference as both sides scored two tries apiece but the England captain was unerringly accurate as he put over four penalties and two conversions, for a tally of 16 points, to ensure his team edged a largely pointless exercise.
England looked to put behind them the disappointment of their 16-15 loss to South Africa in last Saturday’s semi in Paris as they raced into a 13-point lead and were 16-10 ahead at half-time but they allowed Argentina to close the gap to three points in an error-strewn second half.
It was the first time England had taken the bronze medal at the World Cup after winning the 2003 tournament and finishing runners-up on three other occasions.
Relive all the action from the bronze final below plus get all the latest odds and tips from the Rugby World Cup here:
FULL-TIME! England 26-23 Argentina
World Rugby chairman Bill Beaumont handing out the bronze medals to the England team as they file across the stage. ‘World in Union’ echoing round a rapidly-emptying Stade de France – what a visceral thrill.
Beaumont stops Ben Youngs for a longer chat. He’s retiring from international rugby after this tournament.
Luke Baker27 October 2023 22:13
FULL-TIME! England 26-23 Argentina
Here were the tries from that game for your enjoyment
Luke Baker27 October 2023 22:08
FULL-TIME! England 26-23 Argentina
Oh my word. There’s a stage being erected on the Stade de France pitch. Surely we’re not actually going to present England with bronze medals, are we?
I mean… Nobody wants that, right?
Luke Baker27 October 2023 22:01
FULL-TIME! England 26-23 Argentina
Ball booted into the stands and it’s all over! England cling on for a 26-23 victory and win the bronze final.
(AP)
Luke Baker27 October 2023 21:57
England 26-23 Argentina, 80 mins
Argentina get desperate, give away the penalty and this will be it!
Luke Baker27 October 2023 21:57
England 26-23 Argentina, 79 mins
Argentina push from the scrum but Earl picks up at the back and runs down the side to salvage the situation.
England stay tight for a couple of phases, trying to eat up clock…
Luke Baker27 October 2023 21:56
England 26-23 Argentina, 79 mins
Scrum goes down as we tick past 79 minutes. Another reset. This scrum is about ten metres inside England’s half, towards the left side by the way. England’s put-in as we go again.
Luke Baker27 October 2023 21:55
England 26-23 Argentina, 79 mins
Ford was quite upright in that tackle on Carreras and the crowd jeer at the replays, baying for a yellow card but it was Carreras’s shoulder to Ford’s chest. All fine.
Luke Baker27 October 2023 21:54
England 26-23 Argentina, 78 mins
Mateo Carreras is a bowling ball! Huge space down the right and Los Pumas make 50 metres. The speedy Carreras skips round the outside eats up ground and charges into the defending Ford on the 22. You could hear that collision!
It’s scrappy from there though. The ball going backwards, hitting the ground, going loose and England get the turnover! Play stopped for an Argentine to get treatment but it will be England’s scrum put-in.
Luke Baker27 October 2023 21:52
England 26-23 Argentina, 78 mins
Second time lucky as Care feeds the ball in, the English pack just about hold firm and Ford boots the ball into the Argentina 22. They might have to play it from here.
Luke Baker27 October 2023 21:51
