A late drop goal and penalty from Owen Farrell helped England edge a superb Fiji side on Sunday, winning 30-24 to seal a Rugby World Cup semi-final spot.
Fiji threw everything they could at the English in a game that ran until the 86th minute, but the Red Rose held on to claim a tense quarter-final win in Marseille.
England enjoyed a positive first half as tries from centres Manu Tuilagi and Joe Marchant were added to by Farrell’s boot as they jogged in 21-10 in the lead.
However, Fiji fought their way back into the match and were level at one stage thanks to tries from Bill Mata, Peni Ravai and Vilimoni Botitu in a tough loss.
England are the only home union side to reach the last four following the demise of Wales and Ireland in this weekend’s quarter-finals but they rode their luck at times during a frenzied second half having played smart rugby before the interval.
The result avenged their first ever loss to Fiji in August and by reaching the penultimate stage of the World Cup they have surpassed expectations given they entered the tournament on the back of five defeats in six Tests.
There was no sign of the fireworks to come as England surged ahead, capitalising on their opponents’ indiscipline to score three points through Farrell before a second penalty produced a line-out drive that ended with Tuilagi diving over in the left corner.
Roared on by fans, Marcus Smith ran from deep but was swallowed up by the Islanders and the drama continued with Maro Itoje intercepting and racing into space before Tom Curry made a dangerously low tackle on Josua Tuisova.
Curry’s offence allowed Frank Lomani to kick three points but England replied with waves of attacks and their tempo stretched Fiji’s defence, allowing Marchant to jink over.
Fiji wing Vinaya Habosi was sent to the sin-bin for a high hit on Smith, who departed for an HIA, but his side were the next over in a breathless first half when Mata scooped up a loose ball, dummied and strolled over.
Itoje and Courtney Lawes were battered as the Islanders made their presence felt in defence but England continued to force penalties that allowed Farrell to land six more points.
Fiji infringed freely as their opponents racked up time in possession, but two wayward Farrell kicks after he had fired a smart chip into space provided a route out of difficulty and they started moving the ball with menace until Lawes turned them over.
The second half was more ragged and England’s play was frantic at times, lacking the control evident earlier, but the scoreboard kept ticking over as Farrell extended their lead to 14 points.
Fiji lost the ball time and again, preventing them from building any momentum, but they faced a muscular defence.
Finally they broke through, Ravai concluding a sustained assault and when the conversion was added, the deficit was down to a converted try.
The tide had turned and when a Simione Kuruvoli penalty struck the upright, it fell to Fiji and they pounded away at the favourites until Isoa Nasilasila forced a gap and Botitu touched down.
🎯 Clutch drop goal from Owen Farrell.#RWC2023 #ENGvFIJ pic.twitter.com/EuBTDOUPxe
— Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) October 15, 2023
Farrell replied with his drop-goal and when Earl broke clear to relieve the pressure of a Fiji attack, sprinting 60 metres downfield, a penalty was forced that Farrell rifled over.
The Islanders fell short with one final attack and when the full-time whistle sounded they collapsed to the floor in disappointment.
The teams
England: 15 Marcus Smith, 14 Jonny May, 13 Joe Marchant, 12 Manu Tuilagi, 11 Elliot Daly, 10 Owen Farrell, 9 Alex Mitchell, 8 Ben Earl, 7 Tom Curry, 6 Courtney Lawes, 5 Ollie Chessum, 4 Maro Itoje, 3 Dan Cole, 2 Jamie George, 1 Ellis Genge
Replacements: 16 Theo Dan, 17 Joe Marler, 18 Kyle Sinckler, 19 George Martin, 20 Billy Vunipola, 21 Danny Care, 22 George Ford, 23 Ollie Lawrence
Fiji: 15 Ilasaia Droasese, 14 Vinaya Habosi, 13 Waisea Nayacalevu, 12 Josua Tuisova, 11 Semi Radradra, 10 Vilimoni Botitu, 9 Frank Lomani, 8 Viliame Mata, 7 Levani Botia, 6 Lekima Tagitagivalu, 5 Albert Tuisue, 4 Isoa Nasilasila, 3 Luke Tagi, 2 Tavita Ikanivere, 1 Eroni Mawi
Replacements: 16 Sam Matavesi, 17 Peni Ravai, 18 Mesake Doge, 19 Meli Derenalagi, 20 Vilive Miramira, 21 Simione Kuruvoli, 22 Iosefo Masi, 23 Sireli Maqala
Referee: Mathieu Raynal (France)
Assistant Referees: Nic Berry (Australia), Pierre Brousset (France)
TMO: Ben Whitehouse (Wales)
It was a quite phenomenal game in Paris as the underdog All Blacks dug in to keep Ireland out in the closing stages after a breathtaking multi-phase attack.
In a gripping last-eight clash, it was Los Pumas who came out on top thanks to an impressive second half that saw them grab two tries among their 23 points.
It was an historic first ever tournament win for Os Lobos as a frantic finish saw them come out on top thanks to a late converted try at Stadium de Toulouse.
The result was a momentous one as it means Los Pumas advance to the global showpiece's quarter-finals as the runners-up in Pool D ― behind table-toppers England ― while the Brave Blossoms' campaign has come to an end after finishing third in the group.
After defeats to Ireland, Scotland and South Africa, victory will taste sweet for the 'Ikale Tahi as they finish in fourth spot in Pool B ahead of the Romanians.
It was a ruthless performance from the top ranked team in global rugby as Ireland ran in four tries in the first period and two more after the interval.
Samoa will rue not coming out on top in a match they should have won but Care's 73rd minute crossing, converted by Owen Farrell, decided the result.
Louis Rees-Zammit crossed the try-line on three occasions while Tomas Francis, Liam Williams and George North also scored as they made it four wins out of four.
Tries from Damian Penaud (two), Louis Bielle-Biarrey, Thomas Ramos, Matthieu Jalibert, Peato Mauvaka and Yoram Moafana (two) helped Les Bleus to victory.
Los Teros were impressive in the opening quarter and almost took the lead through Manuel Ardao but, after Damian McKenzie touched down, the All Blacks cut loose.
The maximum haul puts the Springboks on 15 points at the end of their pool campaign, with rivals Ireland (14) and Scotland (10) set to face off next weekend to determine who finishes first, second and third in the toughest group of this year's tournament.
The five-point haul in Saint-Etienne puts the Wallabies one point ahead of Fiji in Pool C, but crucially the islanders still have one fixture to play next week.
Darcy Graham was no doubt the standout player, lighting up the game with four tries and a number of other thrilling surges during the match.
The Pacific Islanders needed a win with a try bonus-point over the Lelos to make sure of their place in the last-eight, but they could only touch down two times.
It was a day to remember for fly-half Nicolas Sanchez who became the second centurion for Argentina, following in the footsteps of Agustin Creevy. Fittingly it was the veteran playmaker who opened the scoring with a ninth-minute try.
A grand total of 14 tries were chalked up by a rampant All Blacks outfit, who seem in ominous form since their opening night defeat to host nation France.
With Argentina expected to claim five points against Chile over the weekend, the Brave Blossoms will then face Los Pumas in a winner-takes-all showdown.
The win puts the South Americans level on points with New Zealand in Pool A, who they face next Thursday, although the All Blacks have a game in hand.
Wales were outstanding as 23 points from replacement fly-half Anscombe, who came off the bench after Dan Biggar's injury on 12 minutes, floored Australia.
The maximum haul puts the Scots on five points ahead of facing Romania before their Pool B campaign ends with a mouth-watering match against Ireland.