Six Nations preview: England find themselves in ‘odd state’ as Steve Borthwick’s job to be on the line after ‘brutal start’
England head coach Steve Borthwick alongside lock Maro Itoje and Freddie Steward.
Next up in our set of previews ahead of the 2025 Six Nations we examine the prospects of last year’s third-placed finishers, Steve Borthwick’s England.
After a pretty dreadful Autumn Nations Series results-wise, uncertainty is the word which rather encapsulates the Red Rose at the moment. The scores show that they are not far away, with narrow defeats to the All Blacks, Wallabies and Springboks containing some promising moments, but ultimately they have not progressed since the end of last year’s Six Nations.
They are the hardest team to call going into this tournament. The playing talent in most positions is there, while the style of play has developed since they almost kicked themselves into a Rugby World Cup final, but losses build pressure and that is what Borthwick finds himself under going into the Six Nations.
His England side are not at all terrible, nor have they plummeted to the depths that was seen in the mid-2000s following the 2003 World Cup win, but he needs results, otherwise the RFU may decide to find someone else heading into the next global tournament.
Last year
Despite reaching a World Cup semi-final and almost edging into the showpiece event, England still found themselves behind France and Ireland as the tournament favourites. And those predictions proved correct as they endured a mixed campaign.
It must be remembered that Borthwick had only been in the job for just over a year when the 2024 Six Nations came around and the performances rather reflected that as they struggled to find their identity.
The way they played leading into and during the World Cup was very much a short-term approach given the lack of preparation time Borthwick had after Eddie Jones’ sacking, which meant last year’s tournament was when the new head coach would start to be truly judged.
It began in a solid if remarkably unspectacular way as they edged their way to narrow victories over Italy and Wales, the two teams who were expected to prop up the table and, indeed, that is what happened.
Still, it was two wins and they remained in the Grand Slam hunt ahead of their Calcutta Cup encounter against Scotland at Murrayfield. But that was when it all changed, for both good and bad reasons. Initially, it fell in the latter category as their new style of play led to a litany of errors, with Duhan van der Merwe helping himself to a hat-trick of tries in a 30-21 triumph – their fourth in a row over the Auld Enemy.
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However, that switch in game plan soon reaped its rewards as England ended Ireland’s quest for a second successive Grand Slam in what was an exceptional encounter. The visitors were?22-20 ahead when the clock went into the red, but a superb final passage of play resulted in Marcus Smith kicking a drop-goal to snatch a dramatic – and thoroughly deserved – triumph.
All of a sudden, it felt like English rugby had been reborn and they took that confidence across the Channel to France. Although it was effectively a dead rubber – with Ireland confirming the title earlier on ‘Super Saturday’ with a win over Scotland – there was still plenty that England needed to prove to themselves.
By and large, Borthwick’s men did that as they produced another fine showing, but they would be edged out 33-31 by a late Thomas Ramos penalty and that failure to close out the game would be a theme that continued for the rest of the year.
This year
England ended last year’s Six Nations with games against Ireland and France, and they open the 2025 tournament with matches against the same teams in what could not be a more brutal start, particularly for a side low on confidence and success.
Getting two wins heading into the first fallow week is improbable, if not bordering on impossible. One victory would be considered a huge success and would set them up well for the rest of the tournament where it gets much easier.
However, should they succumb to the Irish and the French then it could unravel rather quickly, especially with Scotland third up, who have dominated this fixture in recent years and have not lost to the Red Rose at Twickenham since 2017.
It is quite conceivable that Borthwick’s men could head into their final two matches with nothing on the board and, in a tournament where momentum is critical, Italy and Wales could fancy their chances of condemning England to the wooden spoon.
Is it likely to happen? Not really, but it rather shows the odd state that England finds themselves in. We could quite easily see them beating either France or Ireland and then going on to challenge for the title but, equally, they could well be in the bottom two should it all go wrong in the first three games.
Key players
You simply have to start with the change in captain after Maro Itoje was selected following Jamie George’s demotion. It is a fascinating, if rather brutal, call from Borthwick, especially if Saracens boss Mark McCall is to be believed and it was done 24 hours before the official squad announcement.
Even without the extra leadership responsibility, Itoje is always going to be a key part of the team during the Six Nations, but this decision will have an impact in one way or another. Will he rise to the challenge or will it affect his on-field displays?
Despite often appearing a natural choice for captaincy, former England boss Jones cast doubt over his credentials and there is no doubt that Itoje is more of a doer than a talker. He leads by his actions rather than giving rousing speeches, so it will be fascinating to see how he fares in the new role over the next month and a half.
As for the man he replaced, George will almost certainly be in the 23, but a hamstring injury has ruled him out of the opener and the timeframe for his recovery has not yet been confirmed.
It is a blow for a pack which does not have a lot of certainty. Ben Earl has been England’s best player over the past 18 months, but he has not quite reached those lofty standards recently and, with Borthwick having a plethora of back-row talent to choose from, he could conceivably find himself out of the XV.
Equally, Ellis Genge, who would ordinarily be critical to their chances, is another to be struggling for form, particularly in the set-piece. If anything, it is Will Stuart who is now one of the cornerstones of the pack, even if doubts remain about his ability at the highest level. But at least he is almost guaranteed to start, which is something that can’t be said about a lot of that forward eight.
The backline is arguably more settled where Alex Mitchell will take his place at scrum-half if fit, and that should be alongside Marcus Smith, even if Fin Smith and George Ford both have convincing cases to take the shirt off him. Fly-half is one position where England have top-quality depth.
Outside of the half-backs, Ollie Lawrence will definitely line up at centre, it just depends on whether it is at 12 or 13, while Freddie Steward has once again become a critical part of the team after the change in the ‘escorting’ law, making his aerial skills absolutely invaluable to Borthwick.
Players to watch
The questions around the make-up of the pack could therefore open up an opportunity for someone like Tom Willis, who has been absolutely brilliant for Saracens this season. A superb carrier with an outstanding engine, Willis looks like a player who would adapt exceptionally well to Test rugby and he deserves his chance in the Six Nations.
Ted Hill is another man who is moulded in a similar way, certainly in terms of his work ethic around the field. Although Hill’s strengths differ from Willis in other areas of his game, such as his lineout work and wing-like pace in open field, it is that willingness to do the hard yards in the tighter exchanges which makes him a serious international prospect.
Ahead of those two back-rowers could well be Asher Opoku-Fordjour, who will look to add to his single cap earned against Japan. The tighthead is still only 20 but he is already a fine scrummaging prop that is dominating in the Premiership. As a teenager, he got the better of the likes of Andrew Porter and Mako Vunipola, and the youngster has developed even further this season.
Meanwhile, behind the scrum, with Immanuel Feyi-Waboso on the sidelines, an opportunity could well open up for either Ollie Sleightholme, Cadan Murley or Tom Roebuck to nail down a place on the wing.
Sleightholme is the favourite after impressing in the Autumn Nations Series, but he has not played since late December and his two competitors are both in fine form. Roebuck is more of a Borthwick-type wing given his aerial skills, while Murley has the express pace – as well as being exceptionally powerful in contact – so the head coach has plenty of options to choose from.
Prospects
England could potentially be title challengers or they may well be fighting with Wales and Italy in the lower reaches of the table, so we’ll balance that out and stick them in the middle. Borthwick’s men have the ability to beat either France or Ireland, but there is currently no sign of consistency to convince us to put them among the favourites. They may recover after a tough start to the campaign but, due to those brutal opening two matches, a sense of realism needs to come into play. Fourth.
Fixtures
Saturday, February 1 v Ireland (Aviva Stadium, Dublin)
Saturday, February 8 v France (Allianz Stadium, Twickenham)
Saturday, February 22 v Scotland (Allianz Stadium, Twickenham)
Sunday, March 9 v Italy (Allianz Stadium, Twickenham)
Saturday, March 15 v Wales (Principality Stadium, Cardiff)
