England head coach Stuart Lancaster last night admitted that it was a relief to have won the opening game of the Rugby World Cup as Billy Vunipola’s last-minute try earned his nation a bonus point after defeating Fiji 35-11 at Twickenham.
Speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live, Lancaster said: “It was a big occasion and there were a few nerves. We got a good lead but didn’t put the nail in the coffin.
“We had to work hard and that last try late in the game was a massive relief.”
Man-of-the-match Mike Brown also crossed the line twice while a penalty try was awarded early in the first half but had Fiji’s kicking from tee been more accurate, then the scoreline may have looked very different come the blow of the final whistle.
However England were able to close the result out and the strength-in-depth that Lancaster was able to call upon from the bench proved the difference as the introduction of the likes of Owen Farrell, Billy Vunipola and Sam Burgess saw the World Cup hosts assert their dominance.
And with England’s next pool game against Wales on September 26 the head coach admitted that he may have to reconsider his team selection after he was impressed by those who made an impact from the bench: “We didn’t get our game plan into action,” he said. “We have to be more direct; we were a little bit lateral. Our bench made us much quicker.
“Overall it was a big game to play and if you’d have offered me a four-try bonus I’d have taken it.
“We definitely have some decisions to make – we have two days to dwell on that. We’ll watch the game again, meet on Sunday and narrow down our selection next week.”
England captain Chris Robshaw also admitted that he was pleased that his side has gotten off the mark to a successful victory after a nervy opening game: “With the emotion of the opening ceremony there were nerves, but now we’re into it.
“The opening game can be edgy and you have to give a lot of credit to Fiji.
“We knew it was going to be tough. We knew it would come down to the last five or 10 minutes because Fiji were hard to break down.
“The bonus point might be hugely important.”
