“We have tried to be enterprising and given the crowds something to get excited about.”England conceded six tries in the competition and we scored three of those We have deserved our success. England seemed to be coasting I didn’t think Wales could do it. But they had a chance to kick which would have taken them nine points clear and I suppose they have paid for that mistake.”If they had taken their chances there wouldn’t have been such a nervous ending. It seemed that every time a Welshman came into contact with the opposition he would surrender the ball.And when they were not turning over possession they were either not recycling quickly enough, thereby allowing England to reform their defences, or they were getting caught offside or not releasing.But they were not alone in a less than perfect performance. The England flanker scooped up the loose offering and, despite being tackled, somehow bounced his way over the line.The frequency of turnovers by Wales was appalling for this level. He, too, kept his eyes on the ball and, inevitably, they collided.

Given the level of noise withinWembley it was not surprising that neither of them heard the other.Thomas spilled the ball, and it rolled obligingly for Richard Hill, who was dutifully following up. Right wing Gareth Thomas appeared to have gathered the ball safely, not having taken his eyes off it once as it described its wicked parabola.Unfortunately the ball was also under close observation by Howarth. The Leicester flanker hoofed the ball into touch, but the referee had spotted the error, and, from the scrum, Wales set up the attack from which Howarth was sent over by a beautiful Neil Jenkins miss pass.That try by the New Zealand-born Howarth went some way to making amends for the crassest of mistakes late in the first half.The neatest of chip kicks by England scrum-half Matt Dawson threw the Welsh defence into confusion – well two of their number at least. The final one came from Wembley’s smooth announcer, who managed to give the wrong scoreline while the delirious Wales team and their delighted supporters were celebrating the marvellous Scott Gibbs try which won it for them. But given the number of errors Wales had committed in the game there was more than an element of luck to it.
The Welsh mistakes were generally a team affair, but for sheer individual contributions England flanker Neil Back took the honours He it was who churlishly hung on to the ball when Wales were awarded a penalty.When South African referee Andre Watson called him to account there appeared to be an exchange of views which resulted in England conceding another 10 metres.

IT WAS a catalogue of errors from start to finish. “Probably,” said the lad, barely visible in the haze, which was more green – through the reflection of the moon on the ball – than purple.Nick Harris. What did you think of England’s first match under Kevin Keegan?

Workmanlike and occasionally exciting.
Which win is more likely – the Tories at the next election or the England football team in Japan in the 2002 World Cup?I’m looking forward to William Hague hosting the Downing Street welcome home party for the team.Who generally comes out on top when you practise judo with William Hague?Our coach – Ray Stevens – Olympic silver medalist 1992.What book are you currently reading and is it any good?Reading Jazz, edited by Robert Gottlieb, and yes, it’s very good.Have you seen Shakespeare in Love and do you agree with all its Oscars?No, not yet.What more should the Labour government be doing to improve British sport?Keep away from it!Chess is now officially a sport (for Lottery purposes) Should darts be next?No. In fact the more the Welsh gave the ball away, the more determined they seemed to atone for their errors.The nerve-shredding climax meant that next year, when they come to tear Wembley Stadium down, the readiest market for pieces of the old place will surely be in Wales.