He had chosen to play with fire. From the moment he stepped onto the Stade de France pitch, a little under 20 minutes from the end, Henry Pollock embodied the most insolent and arrogant England imaginable.

Everywhere in the game, busy at the ruck, always on the edge in the verbal exchanges, the England back-rower spent his time taking on the French.

A long stare after a tackle, a word slipped into Dupont’s ear, a flash of temper aimed at Neti after a scrum had been shoved backwards. Then a heated exchange with Ramos, who did not shy away.

The Crunch is fertile ground for that kind of character. Pollock worked it out very early. And the 22-year-old goes about it very early too, already known for that sort of behaviour. The kind of “English” profile the French love to hate.

Detestable?

In most of the passages he was involved in, the young England flanker did not hesitate to wind France up, especially after his side’s big moments. An almost theatrical attitude, fully owned, which helped electrify an already white-hot match. Entirely in keeping with a player who regularly pushes it to its peak against French clubs.

In a boiling Stade de France, every gesture was amplified, every provocation instantly noticed. Pollock seemed to feed on it. Just like his team, without a shred of inhibition.

And for a long time, England thought they had the last word.

When England retook the lead in the closing minutes through Freeman’s try (77′), the tension was at its peak. Out on the pitch, some players were already celebrating. Pollock too, calling out the Stade de France stands directly, finger on his lips and his other hand cupped behind his ear.

A reckless pass

The upset looked within reach, silence slowly taking hold of the French stands.

Then the script flipped. Pollock won the ball that would have sealed it, only to lose it trying to throw a pass…

Advantage France. One last passage of play, an England infringement, and Thomas Ramos’s penalty after the hooter. In a matter of seconds, the Stade de France erupted. The noise came back, brutal, deafening.

The big chill for Pollock, and for England.

Out on the pitch, the England players stood frozen. And the Northampton man went abruptly from provocateur to spectator of the French triumph.

Arrogance and confidence

The looks that went with his sledging a few minutes earlier had switched sides.

Will he end up learning it the hard way? The line between arrogance and confidence is sometimes a thin one.

But, in a way, Pollock’s temperament, his energy and his nerve make him one of those players who give a rivalry its edge. “We’re going to love running into him again“, supporters said with a broad smile as they left the ground in Saint-Denis.

Because the Crunch has been built on those confrontations, on personalities capable of setting a match alight as much as the action itself. Those hated players (Farrell, Smith, Carling, Moore…), but feared in the end.

On Saturday night, the Englishman may have learned one of the most brutal lessons in international rugby. Namely that in a Crunch, turning up the heat is not enough.

You still have to be the one behind the final spark.