Relief for Johnson as England edge out Aussie Babas

MARTIN JOHNSON put a brave face on another flawed performance after England scraped to their first victory of their tour of Australia and New Zealand yesterday.

Two penalties from Charlie Hodgson and three from Olly Barkley were eventually enough to see off the Australian Barbarians 15-9. England had started well but lost their way and were forced to use attack coach Brian Smith as a water-carrier to pass on tactical instructions after the Barbarians edged into a 9-6 lead.

“Our second string have played their second-string twice and we have got a draw and a win,” said Johnson.

“You can’t substitute winning, you can’t fake it. That is what we are here to try and do. Am I saying it was fantastic? No. There are some things we can do better but we were three points down away from home in difficult conditions and we won by six.”