Steve Borthwick said “I don’t care what people think of us” after England booked their place in the Rugby World Cup semi-finals – Owen Farrell answering his critics with two crucial late kicks to defeat Fiji, having been roundly booed by spectators before the match.
England survived a considerable scare to overcome Fiji and are two wins away from lifting the trophy. While they will go into the last four as outsiders, Borthwick pointedly gave short shrift when asked if his side head to Paris as underdogs.
“I don’t really care what other people think of us, I care about the development of the team,” the England head coach said. “I said this is a team and squad packed full of talented players who perform on the big occasion and they have performed on the big occasion.”
England let a 14-point lead slip against Fiji, who levelled the scores at 24-24 with two quickfire second‑half tries before Farrell steered his side home with a drop-goal and late penalty.
They will face South Africa in the semi-final on Saturday after the defending champions knocked out hosts France 29-28.
England’s victory was marred by ugly scenes with brawling supporters dressed as Lord Admiral Nelson thrown out of the stadium in Marseille. Before the match, Farrell was widely booed when his name was read out to the crowd which was 6,000 below capacity and contained a significant number of neutrals.
“I think he is a fantastic leader, he’s the kind of leader I know I’d want to follow on to the pitch,” Borthwick said of Farrell. “I think he’s a brilliant player who thrives in the contest, and these big occasions, he just gets even better. So we’re very fortunate to have Owen as a player in this team and as our leader. And he should be very proud of his performance and the way he led this team.”
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The crowd trouble occurred in the first half and a video emerged of scuffling in the stands with one supporter picked up and launched several rows forward. It is believed the unsavoury scenes were sparked because a group of fans in Lord Nelson costumes were wearing hats that obscured other supporters’ views of the pitch. It is understood that stewards swiftly attended to the scuffling and multiple supporters were ejected.
England arrived in France after a dismal warm-up campaign. “A lot has been written about these players and what I see is a group who can handle and rise to these occasions,” Borthwick added.
Fiji outscored England three tries to two but Vinaya Habosi was sent to the sin-bin in the first half and the captain, Waisea Nayacalevu, was left to rue a number of decisions by the referee, particularly at the breakdown.
Last week, following his side’s one-point defeat by England, the Samoa head coach, Seilala Mapusua, complained of an “unconscious bias” from officials against tier-two nations. Asked about the issue, Nayacalevu said: “Absolutely! You guys watched the game, you guys can answer that. It kills the momentum of our game, of what we want to play, if you know what I mean.
“A few calls didn’t go our way. We’re just fighting, I just ask that we can have a fair decision when the team plays,” Nayacalevu said. “Already the ruck was formed and [Maro] Itoje just came in and grabbed the ball, three times in the game.
