England player ratings
Replacements
Joe Marler (for Genge, 55) – 6
Struggled to hit his usual levels in both the tight and loose.
Kyle Sinckler (for Cole, 48) – 6
Still working back to his sharpest after injury.
George Martin (for Lawes, 59) – 7
A physical cameo from the powerhouse Leicester lock.
Billy Vunipola (for Curry, blood 45-55, 74) – 6
Searching for his best rugby, just when England need him most.
Danny Care (for Mitchell, 66) – 8
Seized the crucial moment with the winning score to spare England’s blushes.
Marcus Smith (for Ford, 51) – 8
Looked sharp on the ball at full-back again and almost sparked a try to remember only for Itoje’s forward pass to thwart Marchant.
Ollie Lawrence (for Tuilagi, 58) – 7
Cut the line with one telling punch that shows what he can provide to this England team.
England player ratings
Forwards
Ellis Genge – 6
Struggled to dominate Samoa in the tight and around the fringes.
Jamie George – 7
Another very solid showing from England’s crucial experienced front-row forward.
Dan Cole – 6
Locked down the scrum early on but could not sustain that level.
Maro Itoje – 6
Will be kicking himself for his forward pass that denied Marchant what would have been a fine try.
Ollie Chessum – 8
England’s best player on a piecemeal night but at least one where the Red Rose men hit back to claim victory.
Courtney Lawes – 6
Struggled to impose himself on a night full of mistakes and frustration.
Tom Curry – 7
A promising showing given his lack of rugby but will need to raise the level again for the quarter-finals.
Ben Earl – 6
Always puts himself about and his engine carried him through but did not deliver to his usual high standards.
England player ratings
Backs
Freddie Steward – 5
Caught out of position, a rarity, for Samoa’s cross-field kick try.
Joe Marchant – 5
Showed glimpses of what he can do but drifted out of the game for long periods.
Manu Tuilagi – 7
Delivered a promising performance on the front foot against his homeland.
Owen Farrell – 6
Linked well with Ford but struggled for accuracy in a rare off-kilter effort.
Jonny May – 7
Grafted all night with little success but was always busy and available for the ball.
George Ford – 6
Started the night in purring form with Farrell but ended it being hauled off before the hour in a frustrating showing.
Alex Mitchell – 5
Slipped off the lofty perch he set for himself with his shining turn against Argentina, with his core skills looking rusty.
Borthwick hits out at England detractors
Steve Borthwick insists that England have vindicated their pre-Rugby World Cup plans by seeing off Samoa to complete a clean sweep of Pool D.
Head coach Borthwick conceded that off-colour England were too scrappy amid their 18-17 victory over Samoa in Lille.
Danny Care’s late score dragged a messy England kicking and screaming to a fourth straight World Cup win.
Now England are likely to face Fiji in the quarter-finals, where they will launch a revenge mission after their 30-22 loss to the Pacific Islanders in August.
Borthwick responded to the patchy one-point victory over Samoa by hitting out at England’s detractors who had warned against an abortive World Cup campaign after three defeats in four warm-up matches.
Click here to read the reaction in full
Nick Purewal’s match report
The only clean element of England’s nervy 18-17 Rugby World Cup win over Samoa proved the Red Rose men’s sweep of Pool D.
England trudged to a tetchy and error-strewn victory over the Pacific Islanders, rounding off their pool phase with four wins from four matches.
Wales or Fiji likely await Steve Borthwick’s men in the quarter-finals, and England must raise their level significantly to see off either foe.
England have never lost to Samoa but came closer than ever to relinquishing that 100 per cent record at Lille’s Stade Pierre-Mauroy.
Danny Care zipped in to spare England’s blushes at the death of a game filled with bluster and blunder.
Click here to read the report in full
England 18-17 Samoa
Full-time
A late try and then a try-saving tackle from Danny Care spares England’s blushes in Lille!
A pulsating game that went right down to the wire but a lot to be concerned about there for Borthwick, despite his side making it four wins from four to finish Pool D perfect.
Samoa finish their World Cup campaign with a great display, but they will be absolutely gutted not to have claimed a first ever win over England there.
It was within their grasp.
England 18-17 Samoa
78 mins: Why on earth have England put boot to ball there in attack?! Just keep hold of it! Steward the guilty party there I think, looking for the little diagonal grubber in behind.
They nearly pay the price as Samoa streak forward before a try-saving tackle from Care of all people!
What an impact the veteran scrum-half has had off the bench here.
England 18-17 Samoa
76 mins: Samoa are back asking questions of the England defence – before a huge hit from Martin sends them back and they have the turnover.
A strong cameo today from the Leicester lock.
Standard Sport’s Nick Purewal at the Stade Pierre-Mauroy
Finally England regain the lead, with Danny Care racing in from a close-range scrum and Farrell converting.
This has been underwhelming in many facets, but a win is still crucial here despite England already having qualified for the last eight.
TRY! England 18-17 Samoa | Danny Care 73′
73 mins: Care picks the ball up from the back of the scrum, sucks in the defender by looking like he’s going to shift it out to Lawrence but instead darts in and touches down by the posts for a crucial England score.
A simple conversion from Farrell – who is reminded of the shot clock in no uncertain terms by the crowd – is sent over in plenty of time to push England ahead by one.
A huge sigh of relief for Borthwick. But this isn’t over yet…