From the euphoria of the 2015 Rugby World Cup opening last week to the disbelief as Wales mounted an astonishing comeback to beat England in their own back yard.
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And there’s some added edge in that Australia now know that if they beat England next weekend they will effectively eliminate them from the tournament.
Saturday’s dramatic 28-25 Pool A victory came at a heavy cost, with centre Scott Williams (knee), wing Hallam Amos (shoulder) and full-back Liam Williams (concussion) all going off during a punishing second half.
His seven penalties were also a Welsh record for Wales at the World Cup and one short of the tournament record. “We are going to have to improve some of the pieces of our game so that we can get to the standard that we need to be at for the game on Saturday”, he said.
The Welsh hero and South Africa wing JP Pietersen -scorer of three tries -were the individual stars on the most electrifying day so far of a World Cup that is keeping the fans on the edge of their seats with upset results and thrilling rugby. But at that time we wanted to go and win the game.
Wales overcame a 10-point deficit and endless injuries to pull off a sensational 28-25 win against England in an astonishing World Cup contest on Saturday evening. “We had a fantastic performance and I believe we can do it again”.
“The heart, the will, the spirit to win: all were with Wales, and England were left desperately trying to reverse the momentum that had turned against them”.
“For 50 minutes, Wales weren’t in the game and their set-piece wasn’t functioning”, former Wales scrumhalf Rob Jones told the BBC.
Wales coach Warren Gatland had urged his side to “smash” into England and there was no shortage of thunderous collisions in the opening quarter. “I am ready to go and if I am ready to go, I can guarantee they will be”, Lancaster said.
“Rob Howley will look at that as our backs coach, but if you are talking about George North playing in the centre, it’s not really out of position”, Edwards said. “For us to come here, no one gave us a hope”, said the 25-year-old Ospreys stand-off. “I spoke to others on the pitch and we wanted to go for the win”, England captain Chris Robshaw said of the controversial decision in the post-match press conference.
Battered, bruised and second best for an hour, the never-say-die Welsh came to life to secure a famous victory in the 127th and most significant meeting between the two nations.
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“To a certain extent your selection is dictated by your injury situation, but clearly if someone like JJ is fit he’s a high-quality player and we’d want him back in the team”. “We were coming on strong between 60 and 80 minutes even with all the injuries we have had”.
