Ex-Ireland star issues warning to ‘maverick’ Henry Pollock and hails the ‘catalyst for England’s success’

Alan Quinlan believes England’s young players have been the catalyst for their current successful run at international level and issued a warning to young Red Rose back-row Henry Pollock.

Despite occupying third position in World Rugby’s official rankings list, behind South Africa and New Zealand, England were in excellent form in 2025, and after suffering a narrow defeat to Ireland in their Six Nations opener in Dublin, they went on an 11-Test winning streak during the rest of the year.

That meant Steve Borthwick’s troops finished with the best win ratio (92%) of all the Tier One Test nations, while the world champion Springboks were next best after winning 86% of their matches.

And while Quinlan feels all England‘s players deserve credit for the team’s fine form, he highlighted the impact of the Red Rose’s youngsters during their excellent winning streak at Test level.

‘They’ve found some really good young players’

“It’s the players who have been the catalyst for England’s success. They’ve found some really good young players who were dominant for England in previous years in the U20s,” he told BOYLE Sports, who offer the latest Six Nations odds.

“Guy Pepper, Fin Baxter, Henry Pollock, Tommy Freeman, Max Ojomoh. They just have a lot of youthful exuberance and really good young players that have filtered into the team in the last couple of years.

“It’s not that long ago that we were saying England were dreadful, poor, and bland to watch. They’ve become a lot more efficient in what they’re doing.

“I know the structure and the game plan can be pragmatic – they still kick a lot – but they have some individuals in top form bringing a little bit of X-factor.

“They seem to manage games well, and when momentum swings, they can punish teams.”

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One of those X-factor players who Quinlan is referring to is Pollock, who has lit up the Test scene with some outstanding individual performances since coming off the bench and scoring a brace of tries during his England debut against Wales in last year’s Six Nations.

Quinlan, who represented Ireland as a back-rower in 27 Tests between 1999 and 2008, admits that he’s a fan of Pollock’s but said the 20-year-old will need to be careful as he gets older.

‘He does some special things’

“I’d like to have played with him. He does some special things. His acceleration and skill level – he plays like a back, really,” he said.

“He’s just so fit, has a massive engine, and he’s a maverick. He’s not your traditional ‘show no emotion’ type in rugby.

“The tricky part for young players is slipping in under the radar, having brilliant performances, and then finding it difficult once teams know them.

“I think he’s continued past that stage of surprising people. Everybody knows his quality now. Does he still need to be a little bit careful? Possibly. That will come as he gets older.

“But look at some of the celebrations – they’re phenomenal tries. He doesn’t score boring tries; he comes up with incredible plays.”

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