England team: Steve Borthwick resists sweeping changes in bid to end Murrayfield hoodoo as Maro Itoje starts
England head coach Steve Borthwick (left) has made just one change within his 23-man squad
England head coach Steve Borthwick has made just one change to his 23-man squad to face Scotland at Murrayfield Stadium this weekend, with Fin Smith coming onto the bench.
There are, however, two changes within his starting XV, with Maro Itoje and Luke Cowan-Dickie promoted while last weekend’s starters Alex Coles and Jamie George join the replacements.
Borthwick’s side head to Scotland in great form, winning their past 12 Tests, but have not won north of the border since 2021.
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With those two changes occurring in the pack, the same backline from England’s rampant 48-7 win over Wales will once again take to the field. Freddie Steward, Tom Roebuck and Henry Arundell start in the back-three, with Tommy Freeman keeping his place at 13 despite Ollie Lawrence coming back into contention. The Northampton Saints ace is joined once again by clubmate Fraser Dingwall in midfield.
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George Ford and Alex Mitchell once again partner in the halves.
Ben Earl, Sam Underhill and Guy Pepper get the nod in the back-row, with Itoje joining Ollie Chessum in the locks. Joe Heyes and Ellis Genge get the nod at prop, with Cowan-Dickie slotting in at hooker.
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Borthwick has once again named a 6:2 split on the bench, with George and Coles joining Bevan Rodd, Trevor Davison, Tom Curry and Henry Pollock as the forward options. Ben Spencer also keeps his spot here, with F. Smith replacing Marcus Smith as the number 23.
Commenting on his selection, Borthwick said: “Playing Scotland at Murrayfield is always a fantastic occasion and a challenge we are relishing.”
“We made a pleasing start to the Championship, but we understand that we must continue to raise our standards. The squad has trained with focus and determination this week, and we’re excited for the opportunity to test ourselves again on Saturday.”
England head to the Scottish capital looking to claim a first victory north of the border since 2020.
England team in full
Starting XV: 15 Freddie Steward, 14 Tom Roebuck, 13 Tommy Freeman, 12 Fraser Dingwall, 11 Henry Arundell, 10 George Ford, 9 Alex Mitchell, 8 Ben Earl, 7 Sam Underhill, 6 Guy Pepper, 5 Ollie Chessum, 4 Maro Itoje (c), 3 Joe Heyes, 2 Luke Cowan-Dickie, 1 Ellis Genge
Replacements: 16 Jamie George, 17 Bevan Rodd, 18 Trevor Davison, 19 Alex Coles, 20 Tom Curry, 21 Henry Pollock, 22 Ben Spencer, 23 Fin Smith
Date: Saturday, 14 February, 2026
Kick-off: 16:40 GMT
Venue: Scottish Gas Murrayfield, Edinburgh
TV: ITV, Virgin Media, TF1, SuperSport, Sky Italia, Sky NZ, Stan Sports, Peacock
Referee: Nika Amashukeli (GRU)
Assistant Referees: Andrea Piardi (FIR), Gianluca Gnecchi (FIR)
TMO: Marius van der Westhuizen (SARU)
FPRO: Matteo Liperini (FIR)
