England put in a strong performance to defeat a below-par Ireland 21-13 in a World Cup warm-up match at Twickenham this afternoon.
A strong, composed start from England saw Jonny May cross the try line after just five minutes, collecting a pass from Ben Youngs and bumping off Tommy Bowe and Simon Zebo to go over in the corner.
George Ford easily converted before Jonny Sexton kicked a penalty for Ireland after May was deemed to have taken the man out in the air.
England continued to kick the corners and a rolling maul allowed Ford to execute a cross-field kick that Anthony Watson gathered above Zebo to dot down.
Ford was unable to add the extra two as Conor Murray had to be taken off the pitch after suffering a suspected concussion.
May had a second try ruled out after a Tom Youngs forward pass as Ireland looked to put pressure on England, but their defending and handling let them down.
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Ford made it 15-3 after the break with a penalty, before Sexton replied with one of his own as Ireland bucked up their ideas to make hard yards, finally scoring after Paul O'Connell bundled his way over from close range.
Richard Wigglesworth had a try disallowed before Owen Farrell kicked over two penalties in quick succession to put the game beyond Ireland's reach.
Calum Gillon
