George Ford leads England to opening Rugby World Cup win after red card blow

09 September 2023 , 20:58

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George Ford was in inspiring form as England defeated Argentina at the Rugby World Cup (Image: AP)

George Ford was the star of the show, kicking all 27 points, as 14-man England produced a rousing performance to beat Argentina in their opening game at the Rugby World Cup.

Tom Curry was sent off after just two minutes and 59 seconds - before many fans made it into the Stade Velodrome in Marseille - for a high tackle on Juan Cruz Mallia after the Argentina full-back took a high ball. The England flanker was initially shown a yellow card, but saw his punishment upgraded on review.

England went 3-0 down from the resulting penalty, via the boot of Emiliano Boffelli, but then rallied impressively, with Ford's kicking coming to the fore. The fly-half, who was the creative fulcrum in the absence of the banned Owen Farrell, sunk three drop-goals in the first half, as well as a penalty, to have Steve Borthwick's side 12-3 up at half-time.

Stand-in captain Courtney Lawes lead England in defence, with Borthwick's side dominant at the break-down and in the scrum, despite Curry's absence. Argentina came into the World Cup full of confidence, having beaten New Zealand, Australia and England in the past year, but could not get a foothold in the game.

By contrast, England arrived in France in miserable form, having lost six of their nine games since sacking Eddie Jones in December and with a first ever defeat by Fiji fresh in their minds. They could have fallen apart after Curry's red card, but instead they used the adversity to galvanise them.

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Tom Curry was red carded after just three minutes (David Rogers/Getty Images)

Speaking before the match, Borthwick said England would use the words of their detractors as motivation in their Group D opener. “I sense there is a feeling among the players, they’ve been written off too early,” Borthwick said. “People have called time on them a bit too early. I think there is a lot of class in this squad. The players have a hell of a lot more to go. They can’t wait to get stuck in on Saturday night."

That is exactly what they did. Alongside Lawes, Manu Tuilagi and Ben Earl were exceptional in defence, helping turn the penalty count against the hapless Argentina, who could not make their extra man count.

George Ford sunk three drop-goals in the first half (Dan Mullan/Getty Images)

And with the flawless Ford kicking the points, England found a perfect combination. The Sale Sharks man kicked three drop-goals in the first half and was perfect from the tee, too, nailing it through the posts from all angles.

He made it look so easy that when Elliot Daly had a pop from the half-way line and missed it came as a genuine surprise to the England fans inside the Stade Velodrome.

Substitute Rodrigo Bruni got over the try line to score a late consolation for Argentina, but it was far too little too late.

England play Japan next up on Sunday, before further fixtures against Chile and Samoa. On this evidence, they will be confident of their chances.

Felix Keith