Sign up to the Independent's betting newsletter for the latest tips and offers Sign up to the Independent's betting newsletter
England began life under Eddie Jones with a hard-fought 15-9 victory over Scotland to win the Calcutta Cup for an eighth consecutive year and get their Six Nations campaign off to a winning start.
Tries from George Kruis and Jack Nowell clinched a narrow victory for England, whose defence stood firm and restricted Scotland to just three penalties from the boot of Greig Laidlaw.
The Dark Blues did hold their own for most of the encounter, but the difference proved to be the replacements as Scotland’s reserve front-row failed to live up to the standards set by their predecessors, as well as England’s clinical finishing when presented with try-scoring opportunities.
Scotland pushed late on, but their undoing had already come early in the encounter. Before the break, Kruis was on hand to cap a powerful run close to the line by reaching out to score, with two tacklers failing to halt the Saracens lock.
But the telling blow came soon after half-time, as neat hands from replacement prop Mako Vunipola released Nowell, and the wing took aim at the corner before showing a fantastic turn of speed to out-pace the covering defence and stretch the lead to six points.
Scotland rallied and pulled back another penalty, but Farrell saw out the game by kicking one of his own from 43 metres and England saw out the game by utilising their strength in the pack.
So who stood out at Murrayfield? Click on the gallery below to find out.
Show all 30 1 /30Scotland 9 England 15: Player Ratings Scotland 9 England 15: Player Ratings <b>Scotland:</b> 15. Stuart Hogg - 7 Solid in the air when given a second of space, and there was little he could do when fielding Nowell’s chip. However, the pressure came on in the second half and despite a neat bit of play to evade Watson and kick clear, he coughed up crucial possession.
2016 Getty Images
Scotland 9 England 15: Player Ratings 14. Sean Maitland - 5 Not as prevalent as his fellow wing, and his most telling moment was when he drifted across the English defence and was pushed effortlessly into touch.
2015 Getty Images
Scotland 9 England 15: Player Ratings 13. Mark Bennett - 5 Did well to keep Joseph out of the game but would have wanted to see more of the ball in attack mode.
2015 Getty Images
Scotland 9 England 15: Player Ratings 12. Matt Scott - 6 Ran hard and tackled reliably, even though he had the monstrous Vunipola taking aim at him more often than not.
2016 Getty Images
Scotland 9 England 15: Player Ratings 11. Tommy Seymour - 6 Had two strong runs in the first half but crucially was unable to hang on to the ball, and he struggled to take high kicks in the second half.
2016 Getty Images
Scotland 9 England 15: Player Ratings 10. Finn Russell - 6 Missed a straightforward drop-goal effort on the brink of half-time that could have given the Scots the lead at the break that could have turned the tide. Knocked on a high ball on the edge of his own 22, and struggled to direct his side to create anything of note. Crucial interception stopped and England move spreading into space out wide.
2016 Getty Images
Scotland 9 England 15: Player Ratings 9. Grieg Laidlaw - 6 Lovely penalty reduced the gap to a point in the first half, and his box-kicks were having a devastating effect on England. But as Scotland saw less of the ball, his impact faded.
2015 Getty Images
Scotland 9 England 15: Player Ratings 8. David Denton - 5 Didn’t carry anywhere near as much as his opposite number, and while he was strong off the restarts, that’s about as far as his impact went.
2014 Getty Images
Scotland 9 England 15: Player Ratings 7. John Hardie - 7 A real nuisance for England as he met breakdown battles with enough sheer force to cause support players into problems. Could have done more in the loose, but that would take the harshest critic to fault him for a committed display.
2016 Getty Images
Scotland 9 England 15: Player Ratings 6. John Barclay - 6 Restored to the signed and worked his socks off. A force in the ruck that gave England all sorts of problems early on, and won the penalty that sent the sides in at the break separated by a point.
2016 Getty Images
Scotland 9 England 15: Player Ratings 5. Jonny Gray - 6 Tried to smash the defence down time and time again but came out on the wrong side of the affair. Guilty of collapsing a maul that England did their best to butcher when they went to the corner after, but on the whole was impressive with his display.
2016 Getty Images
Scotland 9 England 15: Player Ratings 4. Richie Gray - 6 Performed well in the lineout but didn’t carry as strongly as his brother did. Reliable in defence though and couldn’t be faulted elsewhere.
2015 Getty Images
Scotland 9 England 15: Player Ratings 3. WP Nel - 7 Very strong start in the scrum as he clinched an early penalty from Marler, and he held his own throughout the match.
2016 Getty Images
Scotland 9 England 15: Player Ratings 2. Ross Ford - 5 Wayward in the lineout at pivotal times as England turned his errors into points. Strong in the scrum, but ultimately disappointing.
2016 Getty Images
Scotland 9 England 15: Player Ratings 1. Alasdair Dickinson - 7 Intriguing battle with Cole in the front row in which he held his own. Very useful when carrying as he proved hard to stop. However, his departure had a huge impact on the game as replacement Gordon Reid failed to hold his own against Cole.
2016 Getty Images
Scotland 9 England 15: Player Ratings <b>England:</b> 15. Mike Brown - 6 Mixed up running the ball back and kicking it to safety, but didn’t make any of his renowned breaks as Scotland kept him shackled. A sliced up-and-under went out on the full to put England under pressure, but his error luckily didn’t cough up any points that would have made for a nervy final few minutes.
2016 Getty Images
Scotland 9 England 15: Player Ratings 14. Anthony Watson - 6 Dangerous with ball in hand as he showed a ferocious turn of pace, which also saw him threaten Hogg when the two were chasing a long Ford kick. Defended well for someone who could be targeted in defence.
2016 Getty Images
Scotland 9 England 15: Player Ratings 13. Jonathan Joseph - 6 Kept quiet by the tenacious Scottish centres and when space opened up for him he never saw the ball as Russell intercepted. His chance will come though.
2016 Getty Images
Scotland 9 England 15: Player Ratings 12. Owen Farrell - 6 Not the normal unblemished kicking record that we have come to expect, but he did contribute five points in a scrappy affair. Relieved pressure off Ford, although a needless late penalty for shoving Laidlaw put unnecessary pressure on his team with the game still in the balance.
2016 Getty Images
Scotland 9 England 15: Player Ratings 11. Jack Nowell - 7 Looked bright with the ball and forced Hogg to carry over his own line from a neat chip. Clinched the game when superb handling from replacement Mako Vunipola gave him space to hit the afterburners and dash in at the corner.
2016 Getty Images
Scotland 9 England 15: Player Ratings 10. George Ford - 5 A poor start as his first real chance with the ball produced a knock-on and his drop-goal attempt failed to find the target. Unable to barge Barclay off the ball when rucking over Vunipola, and his kicking was loose at times as he found Scottish hands instead of turf.
2016 Getty Images
Scotland 9 England 15: Player Ratings 9. Danny Care - 6 Tried to inject pace into the attack with quick lineouts, though they came with limited success. Prevented from sniping around the fringes, but supplied quick ball and deserves another run-out next weekend.
2016 Getty Images
Scotland 9 England 15: Player Ratings 8. Billy Vunipola - 9 England’s best player in the first half as he carried strongly and put in one crucial tackle to halt a Scottish break down the right. Team-mates failed to support him when he broke free deep in English territory that cost them three points, but he continued to standout after the break and rightly named man of the match.
2016 Getty Images
Scotland 9 England 15: Player Ratings 7. James Haskell - 7 Moved to the open-side but almost played like the Robshaw six-and-a-half we saw over the past four years. That said, he carried very well, and barring one occasion where he met a blue wall, never took a step back.
2016 Getty Images
Scotland 9 England 15: Player Ratings 6. Chris Robshaw - 6 A different number on his back but the same dogged and determined performance especially in defence. Managed to carry with purpose, and replaced by debutant Jack Clifford as time edged towards completion.
2016 Getty Images
Scotland 9 England 15: Player Ratings 5. George Kruis - 8 Continues his rapid rise through the ranks as he opened the scoring with a powerful run that produced a broken tackle and subsequent try. England’s new go-to man in the lineout, and he belies his 25 years when he crosses the white line at the weekend.
2016 Getty Images
Scotland 9 England 15: Player Ratings 4. Joe Launchbury - 6 Reliable in the air and tackled well as he continues to grow into a key cog in the England machine. Departed early in the second half when he looked to be struggling a little, with Courtney Lawes replacing him.
2016 Getty Images
Scotland 9 England 15: Player Ratings 3. Dan Cole - 7 Returned to his best after a poor World Cup, and got the better of the Scottish replacement loosehead Reid to swing the game firmly into England’s favour.
2016 Getty Images
Scotland 9 England 15: Player Ratings 2. Dylan Hartley - 6 The new captain kept his head and hit his men at the lineout as has become his custom. Rallied the troops after their impressive defence held out in the early stages. A good first outing as skipper of the SS Jones.
2016 Getty Images
Scotland 9 England 15: Player Ratings 1. Joe Marler - 5 Under pressure from Mako Vunipola and was the weak link in a strong scrum set-up. Penalised for collapsing at the first set-piece, though battled his way back into the contest.
2016 Getty Images
Who was your man of the match? Leave your thoughts in the comment box below.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies