Saturday so nearly saw the two Six Nations favourites succumb to opening day defeats.
But where Ireland failed to hold their nerve and allowed Scotland to kick their way to victory at the death, England turned on the afterburners to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat when they hosted France later that afternoon.
It was a tight encounter in Twickenham and one which required an hour for the game’s first try as Les Bleus nudged their noses in front via a Rabah Slimani try and conversion.
The upset was on but former Leinster man Ben Te’o profited from waves of England pressure and burst over for the home side’s first try of the game.
Owen Farrell made no mistake from the tee and Eddie Jones watched on as his team, buoyed and energised by the impact of late substitutes, saw out the 19-16 win.
It wasn’t a classic.
It wasn’t as comfortable as pundits had predicted.
And while a win is most definitely a win, supporters acknowledged the need for a marked improvement if England are to fulfil the lofty expectations that have been thrust on them in the build up to the tournament.
https://twitter.com/cowburn_/status/827949425171582978
Great win for England. Not the best performance but fought back well. 15 wins on the bounce. #ENGvFRA
— Sean Wilson (@WilsonFC2012) February 4, 2017
Not the best from England but it'll do, get in! #SixNations
— Joe Atkin (@JoeAtkin_95) February 4, 2017
Not the best performance but a win is a win and that's what England do best these days. 15 in a row #ENGvFRA #SwingLowSweetChariot
— Michael George (@gedge82) February 4, 2017
Very average England performance. But found a way to win. Somehow. France decent. #6nations2017 #ENGvFRA
— Martin J Bragg (@MartinJBragg) February 4, 2017
https://twitter.com/HarvEltham/status/827950259376705536
https://twitter.com/marchCF96/status/827950276275531782
Not a great performance but its the result that matters. Get in England! #6nations2017 #SwingLowSweetChariot
— Matt Ascroft (@theascroft) February 4, 2017
No one will be scared of England in this six nations, very average! #RBS6Nations #ENGvFRA
— Sarah Angharad (@SarahAWigmore) February 4, 2017
Very average England escape with a win. Saved by the bench & fact France couldn't maintain performance for full 80 #6nations #ENGvFRA
— Neil Callaghan (@neilc9) February 4, 2017
https://twitter.com/mumphtoons/status/827950655562215425
