Relieved Carpenter relishes making long-awaited England debut in USA
The Leeds-born star, 23, made his international bow as part of Steve Borthwick's team that beat the USA 40-5 in Washington DC on Saturday night to round off a summer clean sweep of victories after an impressive 2-0 win in Argentina.
But the match in the American capital kicked off an hour later than planned due to a lightning strike in the area, with the game then halted by a further half an hour on 29 minutes when another struck within 10 miles of the ground when England were 14-0 up.
The disruption followed several similar incidents at the recent Club World Cup in the US, with champions Chelsea's clash against Benfica delayed by nearly two hours after the Portuguese giants endured an even longer disruption against Auckland City.
Sale Sharks full-back Carpenter, watched on by dad Will, mum Jackie, partner Federica and brother Josh at Audi Field, was one of six players to be handed their debuts alongside fellow starters Max Ojomoh and Arthur Clark.
And asked about how the delays affected him, he said: 'Most of us getting new caps were just hoping the game was going to start, to be honest!
'Thankfully the weather held out eventually – there are a lot of happy boys in there and it's been a really special tour.
'It's probably not one the lads expected – it was probably the longest game of rugby a lot of the boys have had.
'But to go out there and get the win makes it very special.
'We've got a lot of strong leaders in there who led the way, kept us composed and got us chilled out and fired up at the right time.
'Mentally it's quite tough when you're about to start a game, then come off again.
'But I thought the boys handled it really well – to get three wins out of three is a great way to do it.
'The connections boys have made is massive and there are lots of happy faces in the dressing room right now.
'It was definitely special [to have my family here] – they're the reason I'm here. They've supported me throughout as a young one and as a professional.
'For them to be here for my first one is massively important to me.'
Curtis Langdon, Luke Northmore, Cadan Murley, Jack van Poortvliet, Harry Randall and debutant Gabriel Oghre all scored to make it three transatlantic wins from three and extend England's winning run to seven matches – their longest streak since back in 2020.
Carpenter nearly got on the scoresheet himself only for his dream debut try to be denied after a narrowly-adjudged Murley knock-on.
USA grabbed a late consolation through Shilo Klein to give the home fans who remained something to cheer about but England's work was done as they ended their triumphant tour in style.
England will now enjoy their summer break before gearing up for crunch autumn internationals against the likes of Australia and New Zealand at Allianz Stadium, Twickenham.
And Carpenter, who delivered a rock-solid display on debut, is desperate to be involved.
'That's definitely a goal of mine,' he added.
'Whether it happens or not I don't know – I've got to go back and perform for Sale now.
'We'll definitely enjoy the break and hopefully when autumn comes round I'm still performing and can get a few more caps.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mirror
24 minutes ago
- Daily Mirror
Simon Jordan rips to shreds Man Utd and Marcus Rashford over Barcelona transfer
Marcus Rashford has completed his 'dream' move to Barcelona, joining the Catalan giants on a season-long loan move from Manchester United, who will save around £12million in terms of his salary, with Barca able to make the move permanent for £26m next summer Simon Jordan has slammed both Manchester United and Marcus Rashford after the England striker sealed his move to Barcelona. Rashford, 27, has joined the Blaugrana on a season-long loan deal - with Barca holding an option to turn it permanent for £26million. He was unveiled on Wednesday at Camp Nou, where Rashford declared: 'I feel at home here – it's where dreams come true.' Certainly, his time at United under Ruben Amorim was far from a dream, with Rashford jettisoned from the first-team squad, dumped on loan to Aston Villa in the second half of last season and then made a part of the club's 'Bomb Squad' this summer, when the Portuguese made clear he wanted him nowhere near his first-team squad in the upcoming season. Now, former Crystal Palace owner Jordan has pointed the finger at both the club and Rashford for how his time at United has disintegrated to such an extent that getting him out of the club on loan without recouping any kind of up front transfer fee - they will save £12m in terms of salary - is seen in some quarters as a win. "We should lament the loss of a significant talent," said Jordan, speaking on talkSPORT, when asked about Rashford's switch. "I don't think he was ever at the level he was built up to be but we should lament the loss of the culture of Man United for a player to lose his way. "Do you remember after the European Championships he hadn't been fit a lot of the season, was in the European Championships squad... came into that. After the European Championships, the club allowed him to go on holiday for two weeks and then have a shoulder surgery. Hang on? Get your priorities right. "I think you have to lay the responsibility on the opportunities that have not been taken by the player at his own door, but if you don't create the culture for these young men to respect and value the opportunities that they've got, they can then get distracted by outside influences." While Jordan made clear his displeasure with how the Old Trafford hierarchy has handled Rashford in recent years, he also insists the player must bear responsibility for how his career at United has unravelled also. Jordan continued: "Of course [it is Rashford's responsibility], but we know there are very few leaders in football. There are more often people who are followers. "You lose them [followers], there's distractions and outside influences. They get more distracted in their social life. They make their decision for their birthdays. They make the decision to not turn up for training and go out on the whiz in Northern Ireland - and things of that nature. "These are things that are clearly being tolerated by a culture. Alongside that you've then got the distractions, the affluence and the wealth footballers have. "You've got a culture of not being able to tell people the truth because if you do, they can't cope with it - it's only good news they can hear so they don't build resilience and leadership." Damningly, Jordan finished: "I think he'll be successful at Barcelona because the clear thing for Marcus Rashford is to get away from Manchester United. That's for Man United's sake and Marcus Rashford's sake - and we should lament that because he's a good player." Speaking at the Nou Camp after his unveiling, Rashford said: 'I'm very excited. It's a club where people's dreams come true. They win big prizes and what the clubs stands for really means a lot to me. 'It feels like I'm at home and this is a big factor in my choice to come here, because it's a family club, people are comfortable here and it's a good place for players to showcase their skills. I want to say thank you for the warm welcome. It's a different environment for me but it feels like home. 'I'm full of excitement and hunger to go out and help this club win. They won so much last year and I can see the ambition is to do better than last year and that is what you want to hear as a player. It keeps you improving year on year and that's what you need to be - the best version of yourself. So I'm very excited to be here, eager to get the games going and I'm enjoying every minute of it. 'I always try to make decisive actions - fast, dynamic plays and I always like good football, so I have always been a fan of watching Barcelona play from a young age, like most football fans. It's going to be a joy for me to play here and I'm going to enjoy every minute of it.' Join our new MAN UTD WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Manchester United content from Mirror Football. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
BBC News
an hour ago
- BBC News
Gossip: Whites confident over youngster Ridgeon
Fulham are confident of keeping hold of midfielder Seth Ridgeon despite Manchester United, Liverpool and Chelsea showing interest England Under-17 captain. (Standard), externalWant more transfer stories? Read Thursday's full gossip columnFollow the gossip column on BBC Sport
Evening Standard
2 hours ago
- Evening Standard
Transfer news LIVE: Gyokeres travels for Arsenal medical; Chelsea in advanced talks; Liverpool still want Isak
Chelsea are pushing on with their attempts to sign RB Leipzig midfielder Xavi Simons and Ajax defender Jorrel Hato, with significant progress being made in talks on Wednesday. Man United are weighing up a move for Emiliano Martinez as well as shifting their focus towards signing a centre-forward, though some say they may not be able to land a striker before the Premier League restarts. Nicolas Jackson and Ollie Watkins are among their targets. Follow the latest transfer news, gossip and rumours live below!
