Tom Curry admits England must be more disciplined in Australia Autumn Nations Series Test - 'We let ourselves down'
Published 06/11/2024 at 19:40 GMT
Tom Curry has insisted England have no "excuses" for their failure to close games out. Steve Borthwick's side are still licking their wounds after a late New Zealand comeback saw them fall to a 22-24 defeat to the All Blacks on Saturday. They will look to bounce back when facing Australia at Twickenham this weekend, and Flanker Curry has warned that the Red Roses have to "step up."
No Filter Rewind: England denied by New Zealand in 2024 Autumn Nations Series classic
Video credit: TNT Sports
Flanker Tom Curry admits England need to "step up" when they face Australia in this weekend's Autumn International.
The two teams meet at Twickenham on Saturday, live on TNT Sports and discovery+.
Steve Borthwick's side will be attempting to bounce back from their agonising defeat to New Zealand at the weekend.
George Ford missed a last-gasp drop goal attempt for the hosts, who were beaten 22-24, despite leading with just minutes left on the clock.
It was the third time in twelve months that they have been pipped at the death after being in the ascendancy, and Curry concedes there were too many errors.
“We can’t be making excuses," he said. "As players we have to step up and be more consistent.
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“We won’t make promises, but we’ve not been good enough. In the last quarter, we, as players, definitely have to stand up. It’s about the full 80 minutes.
“We obviously made mistakes and we’ve recognised that. There’s stuff we were doing in the last quarter that we’re not doing in the first 60."
Despite that defeat, Borthwick has named an unchanged side for the clash with the Wallabies.
The game will see England attempt to respond to three successive defeats, all of them against the All Blacks, dating back to the start of July.
They have only won four of their nine matches across the course of 2024, which includes the Six Nations.
Curry says he was disappointed with how England finished the game, adding: "Discipline-wise, we let ourselves down.
"At 40 minutes it was one penalty conceded, two penalties at 60 minutes and then at 80 minutes it had built up (to seven in total).
“A, that’s three points and B, it gave New Zealand territory and they are pretty clinical. That is a big factor.
“If we solved this the whole time, sport would be easy. That’s the beauty of it – we have to find a way.
“There’s nothing coming externally that we haven’t heard. We’ve had all the right messages from the coaches. We as players need to step up. There are no excuses.”
After the Wallabies, England have a further two Autumn Internationals this month.
They will face World Champions South Africa on Saturday, November 16, before concluding the year against Japan eight days later.
It is all part of their preparations for the 2027 World Cup, which takes place in Australia.
One player who is on his way to cementing his place in the squad ahead of that tournament is 21-year-old Chandler Cunningham-South.
The Harlequins flanker has now won eight caps for his country, and has thoroughly impressed Curry.
"Seeing Chandler step up was really impressive," he added. "But the stuff you saw – the physicality and the big hits – are the end process.
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Highlights: Ford misses last-gasp drop goal as New Zealand edge England in thriller
Video credit: TNT Sports
“For the whole week, Steve was brilliant with him in terms of his line-out role, technique and getting him up to speed knowledge-wise.
"He has made so many steps with that, which people probably don’t see.
"There were only a handful of line-outs, but he’s been brilliant with learning that six role. If he excels at that, then Ben Earl and myself can focus on what we do well.
"I’m really impressed with how Chandler has really got his head down, but also how he has stayed true to himself. He brought out the best of himself and hopefully gets better and better."
Stream the Gallagher Premiership, 2024 Autumn Nations Series and Premiership Women's Rugby on TNT Sports and discovery+
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