England overcomes Wales from behind at Twickenham in Six Nations

LONDON — England came from behind at Twickenham to subdue Wales 16-14 in Six Nations rugby on Saturday.

With two wins from two games, England moved to the top of the standings with defending champion Ireland having a game in hand against Italy on Sunday.

A rebuilding England was down at halftime for a second straight test after Italy last weekend and managed to prevail without looking compelling.

It climbed from 14-5 behind at halftime — it was down to 13 men at one point — by controlling the second half thanks to a better kicking game, defense, and a far more experienced bench. The sustained pressure earned England a try and two penalties to get in front for the first time in the 72nd minute and comfortably stay there as Wales ran out of ideas.

“We won ugly, we were up against it in the first half, but we showed enough to come through,” England fullback Freddie Steward told the BBC. “We are still building and transitioning but we will come good.

“We have a big test at Murrayfield (against Scotland in two weeks), but happy to be two from two.”

Wales hasn’t won at Twickenham since 2015, and not in the Six Nations since 2012. A new-look side with seven changes from the one-point loss to Scotland at home last weekend was still impressive. It led England at Twickenham at halftime for the first time in the Six Nations era but after giving away no penalties in the first half, Wales lost its discipline in the second spell and finished with 14 men.

Replacement wing Mason Grady was sin-binned in the 71st minute for a deliberate knock-on, and George Ford slotted the penalty that put England ahead for good.

“We are going to be a good team, it’s just going to take us a little bit of time,” Wales coach Warren Gatland said. “Some players are learning about game management, and…