Six Nations 2018 LIVE: England vs Wales latest score and updates from Twickenham

England and Wales both claimed bonus-point wins last weekend to give their Six Nations campaigns the best possible start.

This afternoon’s clash is seen as one of the decisive matches of the tournament.

If England win they are on course to claim a third consecutive Six Nations crown.

But Wales proved their mettle last weekend with a stunning 34-7 victory over outside tip Scotland.

• England make two changes for Wales clash

• Wales forced into late squad change

• Leigh Halfpenny OUT of Wales side

Six Nations 2018 LIVE: England vs Wales updates

England 12-3 Wales

HT: Controversy at Twickenham. Looking back at the TMO for Anscombe’s try attempt, it appears as though the full-back may have dotted down before Watson got a hand to it. The officials took their time on the decision but may have got that one wrong.

The players are back out for the second half.

HT: A grizzly first half comes to a close. Plenty of action and aggression from both sides but the weather is making this a grim affair.

England will certainly be the happier team looking at the score. But chances have been few and far between so far.

Underhill on for Simmonds. Robshaw may be heading to No 8.

37: Wales grind forward from their lineout, taking tackle after tackle. It goes left, then right. England holding firm here.

And there it is! Owens receives a low ball and he drops it. Jeers from the Twickenham crowd. That was a wasted opportunity from Wales there.

35: Patchell here with the penalty kick. Does he go for goal? No. He’s into touch on the Welsh right wing, about eight yards out.

33: Anscombe earns some yards going forward as Wales look to ignite this game. The late replacement for Leigh Halfpenny has done well so far. It eventually spills out to one of the forwards, who goes into the tackle and England concede a penalty.

Oh hello! Sniggers all round as Farrell seems to anger Davies after Hartley comes from an offside position. Something’s said. Lots of wrestling and Hartley eventually steps in to break it all up.

The referee takes a backward step and brings the captains over. Settle down boys.

ENGLAND VS WALES FIGHT

30: We’re half and hour in and we’ve a scrum on the halfway line. Plenty of this game has been played in the swirling air so far and Brown fumbled a Patchell high kick to knock on and hand a scrum to Wales.

The ball has barely been out the field so far. It’s busy and messy and very entertaining.

27: Turnover England. For the first time really in the game Wales get it out wide right and run with it. But England’s pack comes across the turn the ball over. Wales then turn it back! It’s a bit messy in the middle there.

23: TRY? NO! WAIT… Wales think they’ve scored here. Patchell kicks over to the left corner and in the scramble Anscombe and Watson go for the ball. It looks as though Watson touched down to kill the ball but the referee wants the TMO. The crowd wait… and wait… and it’s not given. Wales have a penalty, however, and Patchell kicks through.

20: TRY! (Eventually!!) A lovely move off the lineout for England sees Watson withstand a challenge from Williams after a quick Cole pass. England are gaining yards… but can’t break through the red line. Phase after phase.

Itoje plays it to Farrell, who gains the yards. And that’s it! The ball loops left to Launchbury, who flicks back to May before he’s pushed out and the wing crosses.

Farrell converts.

15: Dylan Hartley returns to the field after an assessment. Wales are starting to throw their weight around here, forcing England to kick clear on one, two, three occasions.

Some lovely hands from Alun Wyn Jones almost sets Rhys Patchell through but England close out and eventually get the turnover. They kick to a 25-metre line out.

10: England are taking advantage of any spilled ball out there. Wales struggling to find any territory, while the England backs are doing all the moving here. The ball is swirling around in the air as Gareth Davies clears 20 metres from his own line.

The visitors eventually get a lineout in the England half. Can they do something from here?

6: The ball is all over the place at the moment. Rhys Patchell has a chance to get on the scoreboard with a 45-metre kick dead centre. It sways left of the post.

2: TRY! What a kick from Owen Farrell! The ball spills out to the centre, who immediately looks left and plays a delightful ball to the wing… where Jonny May is charging in to slide over. What a start. Farrell misses the conversion.

1: We’re underway! Wales kick off. And there’s a collision already as Hartley takes a blow to the head. Hartley is off for a concussion test. Jamie George on.

The stage is set

The flags are out. The players are in the tunnel. Jerusalem is playing.

Time for the anthems.

Rain

There’s a thin but steady trickle of rain here at Twickenham. Both teams out doing their normal drills.

It will be interesting to see if this greasy surface is taken advantage of.

England were susceptible to defensive mistakes against Italy last weekend but their handling overall was good. The ball may feel like a soap today. Expect the off twist and turn from both sides.

Warm ups

The players are out on the Twickenham turf warming up. And it’s fair to say they need to. It’s a chilly day today here in west London. A wet, miserable day. Great for rugby!

Eddie Jones on Rhys Patchell

So what exactly has Eddie Jones said about Rhys Patchell?

Jones is known for his wily mind games and appeared to target ‘third choice’ Wales fly-half Patchell in his pre-match press conference.

“It’s whether he has the bottle to handle it. We’ll find out on Saturday,” Jones said of the six-cap 24-year-old.

“He hasn’t played much Test rugby at all.

“He is going to have [Chris] Robshaw at him, [Owen] Farrell at him, Care at him – all guys that have played a lot of Test rugby.

“Wales see themselves on a self-proclaimed roll at the moment.

“So we will see how they deal with Twickenham, and deal with us.

“They had nothing to lose [against Scotland], and they played with a great freedom.

“Now they have expectation, and they have to cope with that.

“It’s going to be different – they have a number of young players, we have an experienced side who love playing in front of 82,000 people that’s going to pose a completely different question.”

Leigh Halfpenny injury

So, Leigh Halfpenny is out of the squad. It’s a major blow for Wales considering he kicked 24 points against Scotland last weekend.

Gareth Anscombe has come in ahead of Liam Williams, which for some is seen as a surprise selection.

Williams has 45 caps compared to Anscombe’s 12 outings. It was also posed that Williams may offer some insight into this England side, what with him sharing a club dressing room with plenty of the Red Rose squad at Saracens.

Owen Watkin, meanwhile, had travelled with the squad despite losing his place on the bench as George North returned.

But Watkin now gets his chance to stake a claim yet again.

Wales team vs England

Late drama in the Wales camp – but one we slightly expected.

Leigh Halfpenny has been pulled out of the Wales XV with a foot infection. The swelling has been too much for the player to take part.

It means Gareth Anscombe comes in at full-back, with Owen Watkin moving to the bench.

Wales XV: Gareth Anscombe; Josh Adams, Scott Williams, Hadleigh Parkes, Steff Evans; Rhys Patchell, Gareth Davies; Rob Evans, Ken Owens, Samson Lee, Cory Hill, Alun Wyn Jones, Aaron Shingler, Josh Navidi, Ross Moriarty

Replacements: Elliot Dee, Wyn Jones, Tomas Francis, Bradley Davies, Justin Tipuric, Aled Davies, Owen Watkin, George North

England team vs Wales

England head coach Eddie Jones has made two changes to his XV that beat Italy in Rome last weekend.

Jonathan Joseph comes in for Ben Te’o, while Danny Care replaces Ben Youngs, who suffered a knee injury in Italy and faces four months out.

England XV: Mike Brown; Anthony Watson, Jonathan Joseph, Owen Farrell, Jonny May; George Ford, Danny Care; Mako Vunipola, Dylan Hartley, Dan Cole, Joe Launchbury, Maro Itoje, Courtney Lawes, Chris Robshaw, Sam Simmonds.

Replacements: Jamie George, Alec Hepburn, Harry Williams, George Kruis, Sam Underhill, Richard Wigglesworth, Ben Te’o, Jack Nowell.

Welcome

Hello and welcome to our LIVE coverage of England vs Wales in what could be the decisive match of the Six Nations 2018.

England and Wales both earned bonus-point wins last weekend to rise to the top of the table.

Hosts England are favourites for another win but come up against a Wales side not short of confidence after stuffing Scotland last week.

It promises to be a feisty affair here in west London and you can follow it all LIVE with Express Sport.