CAPTAIN Phil Vickery delivered a damning verdict after England's latest Calcutta Cup calamity ended their RBS Six Nations title hopes.
England were a shambles against Scotland at Murrayfield, failing to create one worthwhile attacking opportunity. As performances go, it was of the pitiful apology variety.
The confidence, composure and clear tactical direction so evident during th
eir impressive victory over France in Paris two weeks earlier disappeared – blown away on a cold blast of mediocrity.
It was so demoralisingly poor that England head coach Brian Ashton is expected make several changes before next Saturday's Twickenham finale against Ireland – when both countries will be playing for nothing more than pride, while Wales and France contest Six Nations title business.
Fly-half Jonny Wilkinson – who broke Neil Jenkins' world Test points record of 1,090, but did precious little else – wing Lesley Vainikolo, centre Jamie Noon and No8 Nick Easter are among those whose places are under threat.
Even Ashton cannot feel too comfortable about long-term job security after such a miserable effort. He has been in charge for 21 Tests and already suffered ten defeats. Far more importantly, though, England did not seem to know what they were doing for large parts of a dire Murrayfield mud-fest.
Their tactical kicking never progressed beyond novice level; they lost the key collisions, were guilty of dreadful indiscipline and struggled to string together threatening phases.
There could be no hiding place after such a dreadful display – and straight-talking Vickery didn't seek one.
He said: "It is very disappointing, especially after France. We talked all week about performing at a higher level all the time. But we didn't perform at a high level – and we got our just deserts.
"We went out and did everything we said we wouldn't do in the first 30 minutes. We were on the back foot.
"We had talked about discipline all week, before kick-off and at half-time. In a hostile environment away from home, we knew we had to be squeaky clean and couldn't afford to give Scotland anything.
"It is very difficult to put into words my feelings and those of the guys. We will have to regroup.
"There has been a bit of old-fashioned talk. You can be as technical as you want and talk about coaches, but at the end of the day you have got to perform.
"It is not good enough. It is unacceptable we are facing possibly losing three games in the Six Nations."
He added: "It shakes my confidence, because I am captain of a side that has lost another game. I have got to 'front up' and take it on the chin. I've got nowhere to hide – and I don't want to hide.
"We always knew it was going to be tough. But we were found wanting."
Whether England can regroup in time must be debatable. They have not beaten Ireland at Twickenham since 2002, while it is now three defeats from the last five Calcutta Cup Tests in Edinburgh.
England were let down by their kicking, with Wilkinson the biggest culprit. The stand-off suffered the indignity of being hooked from the action after 69 minutes, replaced by Charlie Hodgson as Ashton desperately sought inspiration to win the game. It was only the second time in his international career that Wilkinson had been removed while his side was losing the match.
While Ashton diplomatically hid behind the concept of collective responsibility the root of his frustration was obvious. "I was yearning for anyone to open the door," Ashton said before admitting the reason for Wilkinson's departure was "we needed something different on the field."
Manfully, Wilkinson, tried to inject some positive spin to an afternoon which leaves England mired in Six Nations mediocrity just four months after reaching the World Cup final.
He said: "There are huge positives in this team. We've shown we can beat France away from home, not an easy feat. We showed against Wales we could be in a commanding position after an hour.
"These guys are world-class players. They showed that a few months ago and a few weeks ago.
"You don't suddenly think 'Crikey, we've lost up here, what does that mean about us?' It was one of those days which wasn't a great day at the office.
"I made mistakes. Some games it works out, sometimes it doesn't. That's why you practise all week."
The full article contains 748 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
