England player ratings vs France: Eddie Jones’ men avoid Autumn Nations Cup humiliation

England needed extra time to extinguish France's brave resistance as they lifted the inaugural Autumn Nations Cup with a 22-19 victory in front of 2,000 noisy fans at Twickenham.

Sudden death was ushered in when Luke Cowan-Dickie finished a driving maul with 29 seconds of regular time remaining, Owen Farrell averting a humiliating defeat against a shadow Les Bleus side by kicking the conversion to set up a grandstand finish.

Will Macpherson assesses Eddie Jones’ men after a dramatic match…

15 Elliot Daly - 6

Had a very good first half, and a pretty poor second. Lacked killer instinct when presented with a couple of overlaps on the right. Good long penalty early on.

14 Anthony Watson - 5

Received poor service, especially from Daly, and just could not seem to get into the game.

13 Henry Slade - 7

More involved than earlier in the tournament. Some nice runs and some handy touch finders too – including to set up Cowan-Dickie’s try. Has won four trophies in two months.

12 Owen Farrell (c) - 5

Landed the points that took the game to extra time and to win the game, but was a way off his best. Jalibert got through his channel for France’s try and missed four kicks. Also received a few tellings from the ref.

11 Jonny May - 6

Looked really sharp when he was given the ball, but that did not happen too often because the playmakers kicked so much. Good under the high ball and made a lovely break.

10 George Ford - 5

Kicked so much ball – some of those kicks were very good, some were a little wayward – and was not the central force England required. It was a surprise he did not take over from Farrell with place kicks.

9 Ben Youngs - 5

Was not at his best, but didn’t have much quick ball either. Another to receive a big telling off from the referee.

1 Ellis Genge - 6

Was called in for a rare start when Mako Vunipola. Won an early scrum penalty and put in a decent shift, but loses a point for knocking on to end a long period of English attack in the first half.

2 Jamie George - 6

Not at his most influential. Missed the tackle for France’s try and England lost a couple of important lineouts.

3 Kyle Sinckler - 6

Strong scrummaging performance. Has been less dynamic in the loose this year but rarely has a bad game.

4 Maro Itoje - 7

Won the penalty that sealed the victory. Lineout wasn’t perfect, but it improved when he was joined by Jonny Hill.

5 Joe Launchbury - 6

Taken off after just 43 minutes with Underhill, but had not done much wrong. Has done well this autumn in the absence of George Kruis and Courtney Lawes.

6 Tom Curry - 7

Knocked on twice off the back of lineouts and was a little indisciplined. Tireless as ever and carried well too. Was named England’s player of the autumn.

7 Sam Underhill - 6

Man of the match last week, but was withdrawn just after half time. Appeared to be singled out for a couple of Curry’s infringements but was less disciplined than we have become accustomed to.

8 Billy Vunipola - 8

Was the official man of the match and put in a forceful performance. Topped the tackle and carry charts. A couple of crunching tackles got the fans excited, as did some strong carries.

Selected subs

16 Luke Cowan-Dickie - 8

Scored a try, as he often seems to. Was an important figure and kept his cool at the set piece. A lovely break in extra time.

20 Ben Earl - 7

On early for Underhill and was a force as the game wore on, both with the ball and in defence. 50 minutes was his longest run in Test rugby and he didn’t disappoint.

21 Dan Robson - 7

Was an upgrade on Youngs in terms of zip and service.

22 Max Malins - 7

Only came on towards the end of the 80, but made a real impression with the ball in hand. It is a shame we did not see him start this campaign.