There were plenty of positives but the bottom line is that Steve Borthwick and England missed a huge chance to claim a historic win in New Zealand, writes SIR CLIVE WOODWARD

There were plenty of positives but the bottom line is that Steve Borthwick and England missed a huge chance to claim a historic win in New Zealand, writes SIR CLIVE WOODWARD England had hoped to secure revenge for their one-point loss a decade ago They had led 15-10 early in the second half but Scott Robertson started with win Borthwick's side must now end a 30-year Kiwi rule to avoid a 2-0 series defeat By Sir Clive Woodward Published: 08:33 EDT, 6 July 2024 | Updated: 08:33 EDT, 6 July 2024 e-mail View comments There were so, so many positives to take from England’s display in Dunedin. But the bottom line is that Steve Borthwick and his players missed a huge, huge opportunity to claim what would have been an historic win in New Zealand. They will be shattered to have lost by the narrowest of margins and should have plenty of regrets about doing so.

International rugby is about results. That’s all that matters. And New Zealand were absolutely there for the taking.

So, while England can be very pleased with their performance, the bottom line is they lost the game. Borthwick has a really talented team. England are at the start of their journey, but this defeat by the All Blacks will, I’m sure, prove a more-than-valuable lesson in how to win tight Test matches.

That said, chances to win in New Zealand are few and far between and this was certainly one. The loss will sting England’s players and Borthwick as coach for a while that’s for certain. England will be shattere.