England’s World Cup squad shows few surprises following the announcement on Monday. Henry Slade is perhaps the most significant omission of them all. The likes of Alex Dombrandt, Jamie Blamire, and Joe Cokanasiga have all paid the price for England’s disappointing performance in Cardiff on Saturday.
Borthwick will feel the doubters circling after a desperately underwhelming showing against Wales on Saturday. England left Cardiff with more questions than answers meaning that the return match against Wales in Twickenham takes on more significance than usual for a World Cup warm-up game. Charlie Inglefield assesses England’s World Cup squad.
England’s World Cup squad shows few surprises
We cannot remember a more predictable England World Cup squad that has been picked. England’s World Cup squad shows few surprises other than Henry Slade not going and Borthwick has gone for power and tradition. Understandably so. England rugby is at an all-time low at the moment. The Gallagher Premiership has been ripped to shreds by financial disasters. England’s World Cup cycle has been dismantled by the sacking of Eddie Jones. And Borthwick has picked up an England outfit whose confidence is totally shot after another dispiriting Six Nations campaign. England rugby needs to cling to the ‘familiar’ and start the long, long road back with the basics. The squad that has been picked reflects where England is currently.
Is it a squad capable of surprising many and making serious inroads in the latter stages? No one knows. Based on the performance against Wales in Cardiff last weekend, likely not. England on that showing is miles behind Ireland, France, New Zealand, South Africa, Scotland, and Argentina.
Earl and Smith inclusions hint at possibilities
Tom Willis and Tom Pearson are clearly two promising talents for England to nurture. Their time will come. All of the talk in the last few weeks were about the strengths of these two. Unfortunately, we did not get to see Willis have a decent gallop in Cardiff. Surely Borthwick would have known that Dombrandt would not go, so why not try out Willis? Pearson came off second best against a magnificent Welsh back-row but his time will come.
The inclusion of Ben Earl is a big one for England’s back-row options. With Billy Vunipola the only genuine number 8, Earl’s versatility is a must. He has been a beacon of excellence for Saracens in recent seasons and could play an energizer role for England in France. England’s back-row at the moment is a lottery so Earl is every chance of making the starting XV.
Marcus Smith alongside Joe Marchant were two of England’s best in Cardiff. There will be a constant commentary on the role he may or not play in the World Cup but he is England’s x-factor alongside Henry Arundell. What Smith needs is some trust by the England management. It will be intriguing to see what Borthwick does with Farrell, Smith and George Ford in the remaining warm-up fixtures.
Martin and Ribbans to bolster England’s engine room
Jonny Hill has paid the price for his form these last 12 months and George Martin deservedly makes England’s World Cup squad. David Ribbans has also done enough to make the plane. Looking at the balance of England’s engine room, Martin and Ribbans may not just play second fiddle to Maro Itoje and Courtney Lawes. Given the intensity of the competition, Lawes and Itoje may see themselves thrust into the back-row. Martin and Ribbans did ok against Wales and their respective power will add to England’s options up front.
Lawes has played little rugby in 2023 and he needs to play his way back into match fitness these next few weeks. It would be good to see both Martin and Ribbans get a game each alongside Itoje.
Marchant and Arundell can cover the absence of Slade
Joe Marchant was England’s best player in the first half against Wales. He probably played his way into England’s World Cup squad with robust defence and breaking an otherwise impregnable Welsh defence. England will likely use Ollie Lawrence and Manu Tuilagi as their first choice centre pairing barring injury. However, there will always be the conversation around Farrell’s credentials in the centres and Marchant should be part of that discussion as well. He has the pace, and experience to really push for a starting position and his lines of running are just as good as Henry Slade’s. With Slade surplus to requirements, Marchant could be England’s conjurer in the midfield.
England’s x-factor comes through Henry Arundell. As Richard Wigglesworth said post the squad announcement, Arundell has skill sets that you cannot coach. He is a wonderful prospect if managed properly and can really provide some x-factor for England over the next couple of months. It is glaring just how impotent England’s attacking game plan is at the moment and Borthwick will be desperate to include Arundell somewhere in the backline, even if it is off the bench. We hope to see Arundell on the wing against Wales this coming Saturday.
England must hit back against Wales this weekend
After two months together, all England fans were hoping that England would come flying out against an understrength and vulnerable Welsh team last week. England’s World Cup squad shows few surprises and Borthwick will hope that the experienced players he has stuck with, will justify their selection. What we witnessed was an all to familiar set of problems. In the first half England were the better team but their appalling butterfingers meant that Wales started to believe and then proceeded to dominate the second half. That last 40 minutes will be a major concern for Borthwick. After all the talk around the fitness of his players following the Six Nations, England looked tired and totally bereft of attacking intent. Warren Gatland, the Welsh coach and England’s bête noire, reiterated this in his post-match interview.
Now that England’s World Cup squad has been picked Borthwick needs to get his selection clear over the next three weekends. He has done the right thing by getting the squad announced early so he can concentrate on cohesion and combinations. Given how poor England were in Cardiff, this week’s return game at Twickenham has added significance for Borthwick and his squad. England must win to gain some momentum going into a daunting trip to Dublin seven days later. These losses are mounting up and no matter how positive the narrative is coming out of the England camp currently, England need to produce on the pitch.
Main photo credit: England Rugby
