England: Steve Borthwick’s verdict on Marcus Smith fly-half v full-back debate
Marcus Smith in action for England with an indent of Steve Borthwick.
England head coach Steve Borthwick has revealed he views star Harlequins back Marcus Smith as a fly-half rather than a full-back.
The Harlequins man has been deployed in both positions since the 2023 World Cup, notably starting at 15 in the quarter-final against Fiji, but that all came to a head in the Autumn Nations Series as he was moved around the backline to accommodate both George Ford and Fin Smith respectively.
‘I think Marcus is a 10’
Speaking after the official squad announcement, Borthwick revealed he sees his star back more as a fly-half, but admitted the versatility of playing 15 is important.
“I think Marcus is a 10 who can play at 15,” said Borthwick. “That’s a conversation I had with Marcus, and he sees it the same way.”
He added: “I know his preferred position is 10, but he is a player who is incredibly dangerous in space. Clearly, I’ve started him in a 15 shirt for England and then most recently started him at 10 and then moved him back to 15 later in games; having that versatility is important, but he’s a 10 that can play 15.”
Smith has been an ever-present in the fly-half jersey in recent Tests, starting seven in a row in the number 10 jersey, but he was moved to full-back against both Australia and Japan in the autumn when Ford and F. Smith were brought off the bench.
This also comes after M. Smith publicly declared his desire to remain as England’s number one number 10.
“I am not shy in saying I want to play at 10,” he told the Telegraph. “One of the main reasons I played rugby as a kid was watching guys like Jonny Wilkinson and Dan Carter.”
He added: “I want to emulate them and follow in their footsteps in terms of playing at number 10, I enjoy getting my hands on the ball and I believe I am a number 10.”
George Furbank in a race against time for Six Nations return
The calls for M. Smith to start at 15 have only gotten louder in recent weeks, too, with a big question mark looming over the shirt heading into the Six Nations.
George Furbank fractured his arm during Northampton’s Champions Cup win over the Bulls in Pretoria, and commenting on this Borthwick said he won’t be available for the early rounds of the Championship.
“He might be available right at the end of the tournament, but that would be very tight. Hopefully, he heels very fast, and that’s possible, but we’ll have to wait and see,” he revealed.
The injury to Furbank, along with Borthwick’s admission over Marcus Smith, points to Freddie Steward taking the number 15 jersey for the foreseeable with the Leicester Tigers man bang in-form once again.
