ITV was forced to issue two apologies during its broadcast of England's Six Nations match against France after strong language was picked up by the referee's microphone. The expletives were overheard following a penalty won by Joe Heyes just before the half-hour mark, prompting commentator Nick Mullins to say: 'Apologies for that, I think we can understand that there's some excitement about at the moment.'
England, led by head coach Steve Borthwick, went into the match as underdogs but established a first-half lead. However, discipline proved costly as Ellis Genge received a yellow card and was sin-binned just before half-time. France capitalised on the man advantage after the restart, taking the lead before Ollie Chessum's try sparked a fightback.
With the score at 27-24 to England at half-time, France narrowed the gap with a penalty try. After the break, Mullins was again forced to apologise for language, stating: 'Once again we're forced to apologise for the language, but you can understand why.'
Marcus Smith scored a crucial try and conversion to restore England's lead, securing a victory that denied France the Six Nations title. The win was England's second of the tournament, having previously beaten Scotland but lost to Ireland and Scotland.
Borthwick, speaking before the match, acknowledged the team's frustration with their campaign, saying: 'We are all disappointed and frustrated. We came to this tournament with really high aspirations and we've been unable to meet those targets we set for ourselves.'
