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February 22, 2008
England’s Under 20 side overwhelmed France in an electric atmosphere generated by 20,000 fans at the Stade des Alpes in Grenoble.
Saracens wing Noah Cato and London Irish prop Alex Corbisiero scored the tries with fly half Alex Goode (Saracens) kicking a conversion and three penalties before replacement Rob Miller (Newcastle Falcons) added a long-range penalty in the final moments.
England dominated a compelling and physical game even though they were forced to dig in for long spells in the second half after being reduced to 14-men following the sin-binning of scrum half Ben Youngs.
They made sure of victory when Corbisiero forced his way under the posts after Goode and Cato had combined to open France up down the left with the home side captain Yoann Maestri sent off for violent conduct immediately after the clinching score.
England’s unbeaten record in the Under 20 Six Nations is intact with games against Scotland – at Falkirk – to come before they host Ireland at Gloucester.
"In front of a full house in Grenoble it was a very physical game and a brilliant atmosphere for young lads to play in, which made it a sensational occasion," said coach Nigel Redman.
"They showed tremendous desire. They’re a great 22 to work with and they scrapped all the way against a physical French side in what was a great contest.
"Before the game our key words had been Tempo, which is linked to our workrate, and they came up with it; Buzz, which is an indication of the way we defend, staying focused and communicating; and Smash which is about our physicality, which is a non-negotiable.
"It was all underpinned by discipline in front of a crowd of 20-odd thousand, which is about doing the right thing at the right time. There were some individual errors but the way we rallied round was very special."
England had held on to a 14-6 lead for 20 minutes in the second half but regained the initiative five minutes from time with Goode’s sublime long pass putting Cato away on the break that led to the Corbisiero try.
"The manner in which we scored our last points was very impressive," said Redman.
"We’d been under pressure and Alex Goode produced a great pass wide on the left for Noah Cato which led to the score. Other players would have put the ball in the corner but his choice of that play was fantastic."
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