England raced into a 17-0 lead before tries from Josh Adams, Nick Tompkins, and Kieran Hardy put Wales back in contention. But a try from Alex Dombrandt, and 18 points from the boot of Marcus Smith got England over the line.
Here we bring you the reaction from the Wales camp.
WAYNE PIVAC
“In the first half, we were disappointed with the discipline – we gave away eight penalties at the breakdown. You can’t really get a foothold in the game, and going 17-0 down wasn’t the way we wanted to start in the second half.
“It was a very good end to the game, but a very frustrating try that we conceded. Clearly, the penalties we gave away meant we were chasing the game.
“If we had an opportunity to review that [England] try, it probably wouldn’t have been given, so that was frustrating, but to the players’ credit they got straight back on the horse and came back with two very good tries and we were right at the death, trying to win the match, so I am very pleased with the second half.
“You are always trying to build on the performance, and there is plenty to take out of that game that was pretty positive. In the second half, we built phases, got the ball in hand a lot more, we started to win some collisions and we looked dangerous.
“We are disappointed to be two games down from three rounds. We have two home games left and they are very important as we aim to finish the competition strongly.
“We have had two fantastic matches against France in the last couple of Six Nations. France are a very good side and improving all the time.
“It is going to be a great game if the last couple are anything to go by.”
DAN BIGGAR
“We spoke all week about a fast start and I’m really disappointed we went 17-0 down. It is the starts away from home that is causing us problems.
“Ultimately we have to begin games better. The main headline is going to be you can’t start slowly in place likes Twickenham and the Aviva Stadium and expect to come away with results.
“If you give good teams head starts, you’re going to be up against it. It is very disappointing because it [the start] has shaped the way the game has gone.
“It was a combination of not being able to keep the ball in contact and breakdown penalties. We made some inroads in the first 25.
“The breakdown was a bit of a killer for us and we couldn’t retain possession. I’m pleased with the character shown by the lads to get ourselves back in the game.
“When we strung some phases together, we caused them all sorts of problems. If we can start well, we’ll be right in the mix.
“Cuthy (Alex Cuthbert) was unbelievable. It was almost like the 2013 and 2014 Alex Cuthbert.
“He looked in his prime and was strong and powerful in contact and possession. He can be proud of that on his 50th international and I am just disappointed we could not get the result for his performance.
“If we had been on the right side of the scoreboard, he would have been man-of-the-match.”
