England latest: Winners and losers as ‘hard to ignore’ winger yet again pushes case while eligibility rule costs ‘Brothers of Destruction’
Adam Radwan (left) and Tom Willis (right) during the 2025 Investec Champions Cup
With England head coach Steve Borthwick set to announce his Six Nations squad later this month, here is our take on the key winners and losers from a Test perspective after the weekend’s fixtures.
Winners
Barnstorming eights
Number eight continues to be an interesting debate as we edge towards the Six Nations, but Henry Pollock and Alfie Barbeary certainly made a good case to feature in the squad.
Both men seemed to have that grunt about them in the tight that will please Borthwick no end. Looking at Barbeary first, the Bath ace was looking at the very peak of his powers in the tight, notching a tally of 12 carries for 40 metres while also beating seven defenders. Pollock also notched a healthy stats haul, despite his side’s heavy loss, making 13 carries for 58 metres alongside a tally of five defenders beaten.
This consistent ability to break through the gain line and make metres ball-in-hand, especially in those tight exchanges, is something the England boss wants from his number eights, and with Tom Willis now out of the picture, both men showed they can step into that role.
Reiketi Maasi-White
Centre is an increasing area of stability for England of late, but the supremely powerful Reiketi Maasi-White is once again pushing his name up the ranks. While his stats might not present the full picture, with him notching 35 metres from just eight carries, it was the way he went about his carrying that potentially makes him an asset in this England side.
While the midfield unit is full of genuine options, both for the extra playmaker and the strike option, Maasi-White is much more direct and impactful ball-in-hand than any of the other candidates heading into the Six Nations, and Saturday was a reminder of that. His ability to consistently break through the gainline, almost like an extra number eight at times, played a huge role in Sale’s ability to then play with front-foot ball, and if used correctly by England could give them a real nice dynamic.
He is certainly in Borthwick’s mind, too, featuring for England A in the past and previously being called into senior camp as well, so it’s not out of the realm of possibility that he gets drafted into the Six Nations squad, even to continue his development.
Adam Radwan
He’s yet again in sparkling form, and to be honest, it’s becoming hard to ignore him at the moment he’s playing that well. Radwan is proving himself to be the complete attacking threat in this Leicester side right now, with his pace and power increasingly becoming a key weapon for them. Around his two tries, making it four scores in his previous two games, he also again showed his game-breaking ability with a tally of three line breaks and three defenders beaten.
England are starting to use their wingers slightly differently in this new Lee Blackett attack, but that raw pace and strength could allow him to flourish in it, if given the freedom he has at Leicester.
Surely this is the time to bring him in again?
Billy Searle
Another Leicester man hitting his straps at the right time is Billy Searle, and while fly-half is dominated by the triopoly of Smith squared and George Ford, he is doing his chances no harm at all right now.
His execution of fundamental skills, be it with his catch-pass, which then allows his backline to play off much faster, kicking or just game reading, is spot on. Around that, too, he’s adding these real glimpses of individual brilliance ball-in-hand, notching 86 metres from just seven carries alongside a fine hat-trick, but with them coming alongside those basics makes him look the all-round package.
Yes, he faces a big ask to crack into the grouping above, but he’s going about things the right way.
Hot-shot scrum-halves
Nine is another position dominated by regular names, with Alex Mitchell and Ben Spencer owning that space for England right now, but Lucas Friday and Charlie Bracken both showed there is real depth in that department too.
Both men, aged just 19 and 22, showed real maturity beyond their years this weekend, playing with all the confidence of seasoned pros. Around that, they both brought a real injection of pace, accuracy and general skill to their teams’ respective attacks, with Friday playing a crucial role in Harlequins’ demolition of the Stormers and Bracken again making himself a busy man off the bench, and that will only push their case further.
While a senior cap does seem a tad out of reach right now, they seem to be the next cabs off the ranks in regard to making the senior squad, so it’s very much a case of watch this space.
Gabriel Oghre
This is by no means the first time Gabriel Oghre has been mentioned in a list like this, and it won’t be the last either. He is really enjoying some tremendous form for Bristol, thriving in their high-powered attack.
He seems to be the perfect option for Bristol in that hooker role, adding genuine skill and joue to their pack alongside some proper steel in the tight, which should also prick the ears of Borthwick as well. England are by no means crying out for a hooker, with Luke Cowan-Dickie, Jamie George and Theo Dan settled members of the wider squad, but Oghre just brings something completely fresh to the group and could seriously make an impact at Test level.
Like some on this list, he’s flirted with the England squad for a while now, but could be edging towards that elusive first cap.
Losers
Willis brothers
The Brothers of Destruction were at their absolute best on Sunday evening, which only makes England fans rue their ineligibility for the Test side.
Watching the pair go toe-to-toe was simply gripping, with them head and shoulders the best two players on the pitch. Come the full-time whistle, a Willis brother topped the charts for carries (Tom notched 17), turnovers (Jack made four) and defenders beaten (Tom with eight), while they also finished with a combined 32 tackles (Tom 14, Jack 18).
It’s almost like a cruel practical joke, isn’t it? It’s teasing to the greatest extent, but we will continue to feast on battles like this in the Top 14 next year. A shame we will not see them in the England Test side for a good while, though.
Northampton Saints hopefuls
Phil Dowson’s side will still likely see a lot of their squad whisked away into the England squad come the Six Nations, but the defeat in Bordeaux could dent a few chances as well, which is a shame.
It’s not so much they were bad, but rather unable to stop a rampant Bordeaux side littered with Test-level talent. While it does take a very good team to beat Bordeaux, that inability to cope with the onslaught might just flag a few things for Borthwick.
The likes of Trevor Davison and Tom Pearson had a big opportunity to properly go from outside bets to sure things with a statement display in Bordeaux, while George Hendy also failed to hit the levels he’d shown in recent weeks, too. It’s harsh, though, because they were by no means awful, but rather second-best.
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