England 16 Scotland 12: England trio forced to apologise as campaign hits more troubles

England booked a quarter-final clash with France after Chris Ashton’s try sealed a dramatic late victory over Scotland at Eden Park on Saturday.

It was a victory which saw England scrape through as Pool B winners and saw Scotland dumped out at the group stages of the World Cup for the first time ever.

The victory had been hailed as a brave fightback by Johnson after seeing his side struggle against an inspired Scotland side.

With just three minutes remaining, the Scots were 12-9 ahead and needing one more try to secure the eight-point advantage they needed to go through.

But England, despite being rattled and second best for long periods, hung in there and it was they who found the try-line late on when Ashton raced onto Toby Flood’s floated pass to secure a hard-earned victory and the right to face France next week.

There should then, have been reason to celebrate for Johnson and his players, but England’s qualification has been overshadowed by more lurid off-the-field headlines, which have once again tarnished the team’s image.

Johnson confirmed yesterday that James Haskell, Dylan Hartley and Ashton had been made to formally apologise to a Dunedin hotel worker after she was reportedly teased with lewd comments.

The England manager has decided not to discipline Mike Tindall, despite fresh revelations that he had not told whole truth about his now-infamous night out in Queenstown.

All of that follows last week’s ‘ballgate’ scandal, when England were found to have illegally switched balls in the game against Romania but avoided a potential points deduction after banning two members of Johnson’s back-room team.

And on top of everything else, Johnson is concerned Jonny Wilkinson may have suffered a tournament-ending arm injury while Delon Armitage could be banned for a “dangerous high tackle” after being cited.

But it is the conduct of some England players off the field that may concern Johnson the most – and it certainly concerns the Rugby Football Union the most.

The RFU invest a great deal of time and resources in educating the squad about the potential pitfalls of their celebrity status at a World Cup.

Johnson insists there are no more skeletons waiting to be discovered in the closet but there are strong rumours to the contrary.

“I don’t know what else you do,” said a Rugby Football Union source. “That is Martin’s frustration – how much more have we got to do with them?”

According to the Sunday Mirror, Annabel Newton, 23, said the three England players “treated me with no respect” after she was called into a hotel room to retrieve her walkie-talkie.

“I was angry with them. It is just the sort of thing we have talked about,” said Johnson. “When you are at a World Cup you can regard yourself as being in a little bit of a bubble at times.

“The way they speak to each other and amongst the group is different. They’re a group of young men.

“They need to understand that’s not always the way you handle yourself when you’re speaking with other people.

“What they thought was humour and a light-hearted exchange has clearly not been taken that way by Annabel, the girl involved.

“At the time they apologised when they realised they had stepped over the mark. They had no idea how upset she subsequently became. We were in Queenstown for a few days. When we returned I spoke to the hotel manager, apologised to him for the disturbance we had caused to him and his staff.

“The guys formally apologised. They were shocked when they understood how upset she had become. We investigated the facts fully. They have been disciplined. They have been reprimanded for their behaviour and left in no doubt. If you leave yourself open for these headlines to be written it drags us all into it and that is what makes me particularly angry.

“It’s not where we want to be. We’ve just fought through with huge character to win a place in the quarter-finals. That’s a positive and on the Sunday we’re talking about three guys, all of whom played well yesterday, overstepping the mark and there’s a story in a national newspaper.”

The incident reportedly occurred in the days before England moved from Dunedin to Queenstown, where Tindall and a number of players enjoyed a now-infamous night out.

According to the Mail on Sunday, a spokesman for Tindall said the rugby star “apologises unreservedly” after initially denying claims he had gone to a second bar with the blonde woman he was seen with on CCTV.

Johnson said any misleading information Tindall gave as to his whereabouts that night was a simple mistake and not a cover-up.

Asked whether he would consider sending Tindall home, Johnson added: “There was a video tape in the public domain at the time so what reason would he have to lie about it? I think he just got it wrong in terms of his whereabouts. He’s got his recollections wrong and he’s apologised for that.”

Before the squad left for New Zealand, Johnson said he would not ban alcohol or impose curfews but he warned his squad to be mindful of their conduct during the World Cup.

“They have to come and play for England so I have to trust them,” he said.

It is understood the RFU are supportive of Johnson’s attempts to manage the off-field disciplinary issues but senior officials from Twickenham have remained steadfast in their silence.

Johnson is happy with that arrangement.

“It’s my team. I’ve got to take the responsibility. I’ve let them (Twickenham) know. It’s the way I’ve decided to handle it. They don’t tell me what to do,” he said.

With regards to Wilkinson, the England fly-half had a scan on his right forearm which proved inconclusive and Johnson hopes to know more today about his availability to face France. Armitage was cited for a challenge on Scotland full-back Chris Paterson. The offence carries a guideline suspension of two to 10 weeks.