England squad: Five takeaways as Bath duo ‘missing’ and ‘time to shine’ for Henry Slade
England squad: Five takeaways as Bath duo 'missing' but Henry Slade's 'time to shine'
Steve Borthwick has named his England side to face Fiji in the second round of the Nations Championship.
Here are our five takeaways from his selection.
The top line
At first glance, there’s the exciting return of two of England’s stars to their favoured positions: Henry Slade back to centre and Tommy Freeman to the wing. Exciting talents Benhard Janse van Rensburg and Noah Caluori are set to arrive off the bench, alongside seasoned professionals such as Tom Curry and Luke Cowan-Dickie.
But looking closer, questions start to arise. Why’s Marcus Smith out of position again? Where’s Ben Spencer? Is Max Ojomoh even still in camp?
Granted, these observations are all personal preferences, and many would quite rightly argue that those opinions are less well informed than the coaches selecting these players.
But, they’re opinions that many England fans will share.
The return of Henry Slade
One such shared calling was for the return of Slade. We recently asked fans at the Gallagher PREM final whether they would like to see Slade back in England colours, and despite the majority of people we spoke to being Northampton Saints fans, the response was clear – England need him.
He’s never quite performed as well for England as he has for Exeter Chiefs, but with England now lacking experience in the backline, perhaps now is the time for him to shine.
In previous England teams, he’s had the likes of Owen Farrell to bark orders and organise the backs, but at 33 years old – six years older than the second-oldest back, Marcus Smith – he could be key for the team.
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Teenage sensation, one of three debutants
Youth dominates the backline, but one of England’s three debutants certainly doesn’t have youth on his side. Janse van Rensburg, at the age of 29, will make his way off the bench to play his first match in England colours. He’s had to bide his time to earn a Test cap after initially being ignored by the Springboks, but will finally be able to take that next step up.
He’s joined by his Bristol Bears teammate, George Kloska, who is also set to make a slightly late international debut at 26 years of age. Kloska has impressed in all three of his England ‘A’ showings, and will hope to make a positive impact when he arrives off the bench on Saturday.
The third debutant is arguably the most exciting of all. Teenage sensation Caluori will be waiting in the wings for his first big opportunity in an England shirt. The young man astonishingly scored 18 tries for Saracens in the Gallagher PREM in his breakthrough season, including 10 in two matches against Sale Sharks. His athletic ability in attack is in no way in doubt, but his defensive work will certainly be tested when he rises to international level.
Why must Pollock wait again?
The previous teenage sensation to come through the ranks and make it at the international level was Henry Pollock. It’s a big statement to say that he’s “made it” with England, but his statistics generally do speak for themselves.
And this begs the question, why must Pollock be reduced to explosive substitute performances when he’s more than capable of playing full matches for Northampton Saints?
Well, simply put, Borthwick has more options in the back-row than Phil Dowson does at Northampton Saints. And within those options, Pollock’s enthusiasm is the most useful when the team need a lift.
In fact, it appears that Borthwick has applied the impact logic to Curry. Despite starting the match last week, he’s now been benched – but not necessarily because he performed poorly last week. In fact, it’s more likely because Curry’s skill set allows him to greatly impact the game from the bench, while Guy Pepper’s youth and speed around the breakdown allow him to make an impact for longer on the field.
Ben Earl and Ollie Chessum make up the back-row alongside Pepper. Chessum can act as a third lock, while Earl has the versatility to also step into the role of flanker when required.
The number nine question mark
The final point is more of a specialist one. Scrum-halves have a very important role in the team, but England have struggled to settle on which one to stick with.
Alex Mitchell has held the number nine role since the 2023 World Cup, with Harry Randall, Jack van Poortvliet and Spencer taking it in turns to provide cover.
This Autumn Nations Series, however, JVP appears to have regained the shirt for the time being. Returning from injury, Mitchell has had to make do with a backup role, while Spencer appears to have gone missing.
It’s Spencer’s absence that appears to have frustrated fans, with many neutrals having had him as their first choice before the tournament began. He’s Bath’s captain; his game management skills can rival the very best, yet he’s struggling for game time yet again.
Borthwick could well be choosing his best nine based on the player he’s chosen at ten, but then would a Mitchell and Fin Smith partnership not work better?