By BBC (Sports) | Created at 2024-11-11 18:56:29 | Updated at 2024-11-18 08:30:50
6 days ago
Autumn Nations Series: England v South Africa
Venue: Allianz Stadium, Twickenham Date: Saturday, 16 November Kick-off: 17:40 GMT
Coverage: Listen to live commentary on BBC Radio 5 Live and BBC Sounds, follow live text commentary on the BBC Sport website and app.
England's review of their last-gasp defeat by Australia was "brutal" but exactly what the squad needed, says wing Ollie Sleightholme.
Steve Borthwick's side conceded 42 points at Twickenham's Allianz Stadium, with replacement wing Max Jorgensen scoring in the fourth minute of injury time to cancel out what looked to be a late winning-try by England's Maro Itoje.
The result was their second narrow defeat of the Autumn Nations Series after the two-point loss to New Zealand, and their fourth loss in a row.
"It has been really good to chew the fat on what happened and really get a grasp of what we need to do and what needs to change," Sleightholme told BBC Sport. "It was a brutal view and it needs to be.
"It was a case of getting it all out there and not shying away from any of it.
"At the end of the day we didn't get it done. It is a frustrating review and a frustrating game to look back on.
"We left some opportunities out there and we didn't nullify some of their attacks. There are a few things [to work on] in all areas."
Sleightholme, 24, came on as a replacement and scored twice in the second half to register his first two international tries.
Marcus Smith's touchline conversion from the Northampton wing's second try put England into a 30-28 lead heading into the final 10 minutes.
However, two Wallaby tries - either side of Itoje's 78th-minute score - saw Australia register only their second win against England in their past 12 meetings.
The frantic finale also prevented a dream first game at Allianz Stadium for Sleightholme, who won his third cap on Saturday.
"It was nice to score but it doesn't mean anything if you don't win," he added.
It is the fourth game in five matches that Borthwick's side have fallen on the wrong side of the final play, following two close Tests against the All Blacks in July and a 33-31 defeat by France in their final game of this year's Six Nations.
On Saturday, England will face world champions South Africa, who defeated Scotland in their opening match of the autumn on Sunday.
"We're testing fans' patience, testing our patience," admitted England number eight Ben Earl. "It feels like we won the game twice against Australia and then managed to lose it. Frustrating.
"Not the same old problems, different problems, but the same overwhelming feeling of another game that we've let slip. So food for thought."
