England produced 80 minutes of quality rugby in Paris yesterday to see off a youthful French team by 11 points. And today's comments by Marc Lievremont, that Mark Regan is a 'grotesque clown', simply highlighted the English success in getting under the skin of the home side.
As well as watching England beat France I also saw Wasps scrape past Bristol at Adams Park thanks to a late late try from replacement scrum-half Mark McMillan.
It was a thrilling game and one of the best live matches I have ever seen. A superb advert for the Premiership, especially during an international period when quality and consistency sometimes drop.
Carrying Passengers
The one thing that was apparent from the day's rugby was how on earth has Ian Balshaw made it into the England team?
His comical effort at catching a high ball followed by a ridiculous decision to let another high ball bounce before gathering could have easily handed the French easy points and a sniff of victory.
Quite what Brian Ashton thinks Balshaw brings to the team is unclear, and it is easy to name probably half a dozen players who could do better than the Gloucester man.
Lewsey, Tait, Morgan and Abendanon could all do a job.
Even Cipriani would offer more in the 15 shirt, while gaining valuable experience on the international scene for what is expected to be a long and illustrious career.
I just hope Ashton is not too belligerent and complacent to recognise that Balshaw does not deserve his place in the squad.
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