Luke Cowan-Dickie was not to blame for England’s defeat by Scotland said coach Eddie Jones after the hooker conceded a vital penalty try and yellow card.
Cowan-Dickie deliberately knocked the ball into touch, preventing Scotland wing Darcy Graham getting on the end of a 66th-minute Finn Russell cross-kick.
England’s 17-10 lead was wiped out and, with Cowan-Dickie in the sin-bin, Russell kicked a game-winning penalty.
“We don’t apportion any blame to Luke,” said Jones.
“He was contesting a ball in a different area [to where he usually finds himself] and the referee adjudicated it was a yellow card so we accept that and get on with it.
“Luke is disappointed, that happens in the moment. He played exceptionally well and he is very disappointed, but all the boys are supporting him
“We only have ourselves to blame, it comes down to us not being clinical enough today.”
England had more territory and possession in their Six Nations opener, as well as twice as much ball and time in the opposition 22 as Scotland did.
But Cowan-Dickie swatting the ball away from the waiting Graham’s grasp opened up Scotland’s route to victory and, combined with last year’s success at Twickenham, their first back-to-back wins over their old rivals since 1984.
‘A moment of madness’
The view from the commentary gantry was unanimous. Referee Ben O’Keefe got the big call right and Cowan-Dickie got a big moment horribly wrong.
Former England hooker Brian Moore called it “a moment of madness”.
“The irony was Cowan-Dickie could’ve caught that,” he added.
Former England scrum-half Matt Dawson agreed. “There is no debate about the penalty try,” he said on BBC Radio 5 Live.
“I thought it was a competition for the ball initially, but it was so blatant by Luke Cowan-Dickie.
“When you’re up against it and the crowd are onto you, your brain goes to mush.”
It was Russell’s daring and execution that put Cowan-Dickie under the spotlight.
With his team seven points down and less than 15 minutes to go, he landed a pin-point cross-kick in the hands of Duhan van der Merwe on the left wing.
Van der Merwe swerved inside opposite number Max Malins and thundered into the England 22.
The visiting defence swept across to try and snuff out the danger. Joe Marchant, usually stationed on the opposite wing, was one of those drawn in to try to plug the gap.
They managed to haul down Van der Merwe. But at a cost. As Scotland recycled fast, Russell spotted England were now short-staffed on the right wing. Another precise bomb isolated Cowan-Dickie in an aerial contest with Graham.
Cowan-Dickie is three inches taller but, as a hooker, vastly less experienced in competing for the ball in the air.
“Poor Luke Cowan-Dickie is in a position there that he has probably never been in before in his career and will never be again,” said former Scotland captain John Barclay on BBC One.
Russell wasn’t done yet. With Cowan-Dickie in the sin-bin, he found touch deep in England’s 22m, where, without a hooker on the field, prop Joe Marler botched the line-out throw to replacement back row Alex Dombrandt.
Scotland earned a penalty from the resulting scrum and Russell steered over the decisive three points to inflict a fourth defeat in six Six Nations matches for Jones’ side.
