Proud England stuck in the middle

There are some sporting weekends which are tough to beat, and this one just past qualifies with flying colours. The agony and ecstasy, the fine margins of defeat or victory. The birth of a new star or the end of the line for previous heroes. We saw it all across the continents and it is stunning that sport has the ability to lift us to the heights of emotion as well as leave us with crushing disappointment.

Didn't Spain simply have it all? They could have scored 5 against England with a mesmerising mix of youth, passion and pace. They left it all out on the pitch and that is all you can do in finals of such magnitude. It was a night for wingers with WIlliams and Yamal irresistible. No disgrace for a (mainly) youthful England, but they could not create a momentum in midfield to trouble the Spanish through the match. At 1-1 after 73 minutes and with a last minute header cleared off the line, we all dared to dream but it will now take a mindset shift and a level of ambition to be injected into this group which if we are honest was lacking through the tournament.

Meantime, the ambition of Alcaraz in calling conclusive time on Novak Djokovic's Wimbledon hopes was stunning. From the first shot he elevated his game to a standard that left his opponent stunned and appreciative - after all it was what Djokovic has done to others. His mere appearance in the final so soon after knee surgery may have been a statement on the quality of others. Alcaraz left it all out there as did his compatriots later in the day. Spain really had a day to remember!

Talking of Spanish wingers, in Auckland it was the wingers who also dominated proceedings as England sought to become only the third English side to win in New Zealand. Freeman and Weyi-Faboso are real gems and will dominate the game for years to come if they can get enough ball. I believe England must employ it's midfield differently to gather these momentum-building wins. Giving prime ball to Ben Earl who is NOT a centre and asking him to time a tricky pass gets me hot under the collar. If the All Blacks were indeed there for the taking, well take them then! Better use of our possession through the middle would have seen us 20 points up, and I wonder how frustrated are Lawrence and Slade? Instead Beauden Barrett produced a match winning performance from the bench. Why are we surprised, he is pure class! To round off the wingers analogy, Tele'a once again showed his predator instincts but Reeve will be lucky to survive after Sleightholme showed him a clean set of heels at the first time of asking - and in front of the main stand!

Much chat about 'getting across the line' then, turning the screw in the crucial last quarter of the truly big games. Our football and rugby teams have not learnt that yet. It is what separates the winners from the wannabes. In both England's case, play the ball towards your matchwinners and you can prevail. Too late for Southgate and I think history will be kind to him although the hard edge was only occasionally evident. Borthwick will not shy from the analysis- perhaps in that will be included 'keep your best players on the pitch' and I have no doubt that England can get one back in November- they have become that good and it will be the Kiwi's turn to be weary.

One last piece of psyche - it takes a mindset when points up with 30 minutes to go and the game is there to be won. Go again and make it a two score game, the best sides do unless they are used to winning by one point. In Berlin, England's equaliser caused a Lions roar from the pubs and houses that could be heard across the country, only for our heroes to step back and invite the Spanish matadors to step up and win the game.

Finally, to Durban and an incredible piece of drama. Frawley was as influential as Barrett in Auckland, and he had nerves of steel in a contest of unrivalled ferocity. Both England and New Zealand have a way to go, but they have momentum. No point peaking too early!

Now for a deep breath from so much sporting excellence - and I haven't even mentioned the Open,Tour de France, England cricket and the Olympics......... roll on for an endless summer ( well a little bit of summer would do)