Southern stars ease disappointment of England’s early World Cup exit | Eddie Butler

Hosts provided a stunning stage but Australia, New Zealand and others who placed emphasis on athleticism and awareness of space put on the showThe matter of qualification will long hang over this Rugby World Cup. That England did not make it out of Pool A will haunt the rugby fraternity of the host nation, the shroud that contrasts with the red carpets unrolled so welcomingly from Exeter to Newcastle, from Brighton to – it’s still weird – Cardiff. The generosity of the party-throwers, with the possible exception of that last host city, where England’s early exit did not trigger scenes of mass …