OWEN FARRELL scraped past the rugby World Cup point-scoring record – just like England edged past Argentina in the third-place play-off.
Farrell’s 16 points took him to 75, one more than France legend Thomas Ramos, after this nail-biting clash for bronze at the Stade de France
But the Red Rose had to defend desperately for the final quarter of the match.
Ben Earls and Theo Dan notched tries for England, with Tomas Cubelli sparking an Argentinian fightback inbetween with a controversial “forward pass” score late in the first half.
After the Red Rose scrum just failed to fend off South Africa’s fightback in last weekend’s semi-final, it was their front five who did the job in the closing stages this time.
Nonetheless, Nicolas Sanchez missed a penalty for Argentina on 76 minutes that would have levelled the match and possibly sent it to extra time.
And make no mistake, this contest was as gruelling as any contest at this tournament – despite both sides’ hangover after missing the final.
As ex-England fly-half Paul Grayson told BBC Radio 5 Live: “We said this was the game that nobody wants to play in. Them teams have proved us wrong, it was an absolute Test match.
“Only three points in it on the scoreboard – credit to both teams.”
But now it’s the main event – New Zealand and South Africa in the final at the same venue on Saturday.
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