At times like these, when the defeats are stacking up and the same old problems are not being solved, regime change is often raised and debated, called for and considered.
Let’s just address the elephant in the room right away. Steve Borthwick is under major pressure but there is no indication at all that his job is in jeopardy. In a results business, England’s head coach is not producing the goods, yet nothing is pointing to an imminent, seismic upheaval.
Supporters are losing hope and patience, but their mood doesn’t appear to be echoed in the corridors of power.
There is zero chance of the RFU hierarchy harshly marking their own homework. It all feels very cosy and supportive and safe. Boardroom unrest, if any exists, is not apparent beyond the walls of the crumbling fortress at Twickenham. All is silent.
They would not break cover in response to shocking revelations in Danny Care’s book, so don’t expect tough talk in public about unacceptable results.
Steve Borthwick is under major pressure but there is no indication at all that his job is in jeopardy
In a results business, England’s head coach is not producing the goods, yet nothing is pointing to an imminent, seismic upheaval
Before Eddie Jones was sacked, England’s 2022 autumn results included a 52-13 win over Japan
A nice, neat review will happen at the end of this month. Everyone will be consulted, everyone will say a breakthrough is imminent and everyone will congratulate each other for a calm, measured assessment of the evidence and the conclusion that everything is red rosy. Nothing to see here.
What exactly are the performance-related expectations of the union’s board? They don’t like to divulge such things in case it removes their wiggle room. Whatever they are, they would include the ability to put away the team lying ninth in the World Rugby rankings at home.
Before Eddie Jones was sacked, England’s 2022 autumn results were a one-point defeat against Argentina, a 52-13 win over Japan, a dramatic 25-25 fightback draw with the All Blacks and a 27-13 surrender to South Africa.
Months earlier, they had claimed a 2-1 series win Down Under. But Bill Sweeney and the rest of the RFU suits had lost faith in the Australian following another dire Six Nations campaign earlier in the year.
In 2024, under Borthwick, England have lost two out of three Tests on tour and now, with the world-champion Springboks rumbling ominously their way, the national team are facing up to the grim threat of three straight autumn losses, before a home banker versus Jones’s Japan.
Borthwick has a 50 per cent win record. Beating Ireland by one point earlier this year remains the only statement win against a higher-ranked side. Against France, England have lost two out of two. It’s been the same return against Scotland.
All three clashes with New Zealand have gone against them, as has the one to date against South Africa. They lost at home to Fiji and almost suffered the same calamity in Marseille, in the World Cup quarter-final. They scraped to victory against Samoa.
This is not an agenda against a dedicated, hard-working man. Not at all. These are just facts.
Months earlier, they had claimed a 2-1 series win Down Under but RFU had already lost faith in Jones
England have lost two out of three Tests on tour and world-champions South Africa are now rumbling ominously their way
This isn’t Premier League football; nobody is screaming for sackings at the first sign of trouble, not in these pages or anywhere else. Patience is called for, some leeway, some slack. But how much is it acceptable for the RFU to provide?
They will be growing mighty weary of watching the country’s flagship team having their pants pulled down in their own arena, in front of their own people.
France stuck more than 50 on England at Twickenham last year and now the Wallabies — cannon fodder in the Rugby Championship — have scored five tries and 42 points to inflict a fifth defeat in six games on Borthwick’s stuttering side.
Jamie George, the dejected captain and an ultra-honest realist, said it was ‘unacceptable’ to let visitors rack up such a huge score. Quite right.
What happened to the big upturn? Jones launched his tenure with a world record-equalling run of victories. It took him more than five years to record his 13th loss in charge of England. It has taken Borthwick 26 matches and less than two years.
Joe Schmidt is turning Australia around; the development is evident and indisputable. Before him, in the space of a year, Michael Cheika transformed the Wallabies from a rabble to 2015 World Cup finalists.
Felipe Contepomi is rapidly making his mark with Argentina, who have just put 50 points on Italy. New regimes often have a profound impact, but Borthwick came in at an awkward time and there has been no rocket-launch effect.
Yet another game has slipped away from England. They were imperious in establishing a 15-3 lead but stopped playing. It went from power and pace to slow it down and kick. English feet were lifted off Wallaby throats.
Beating Ireland by one point earlier this year remains the only statement win against a higher-ranked side
All three clashes with New Zealand have gone against them under Borthwick
The hosts invited trouble and it duly arrived. Why are the same faults so regularly occurring? Momentum and composure were lost yet again.
There was a Groundhog Day feel to the post-match debrief after the hosts had failed to put away stricken rivals for a second successive weekend.
Instead of a last-quarter collapse, this time they fell asleep at the wheel in quarters two and three before hitting the accelerator again in a panic. Between minutes 20 and 57, the home side scored just three points and conceded 25. An inexplicable drift.
Borthwick tried to explain it as a time when his team went off script and became too loose. But it was precisely because of Marcus Smith’s sparky, instinctive brilliance that England almost found a way out of the hole they had dug themselves.
There was an instructive contrast between talk about ‘structure’ and ‘framework’ from the home camp, while the jubilant victors revelled in the ‘freedom’ to back their skills.
And what skills they had. The Wallabies produced stunning running rugby. This was a performance which not only saved their year, it also saved the Lions tour. So dazzling, daring and dangerous were Schmidt’s team that they will have ignited anticipation for that epic event next summer, on both sides of the equator.
On this evidence, they should at least threaten Britain and Ireland’s finest, especially if they are able to add the monstrous Will Skelton and Samu Kerevi to the mix, along with the heroes of this famous upset.
It won’t be much of a consolation to England, but they were involved in a pulsating classic. This was rugby as a branch of the entertainment industry. When it looks like this, what a sport we have. For once, those who shelled out three-figure sums for tickets will have been left convinced that they were a bargain.
Jamie George, the dejected captain and an ultra-honest realist, said it was ‘unacceptable’ to let visitors rack up such a huge score. Quite right
It was thunderous and glorious, bonkers and brilliant. It is hard to recall many more captivating Tests at Twickenham. The place was bouncing. Wonderful.
It was also the day a new star illuminated an old sporting rivalry. Joseph-Aukuso Sua’ali’i delivered a union debut from the sporting heavens, following his switch from rugby league.
The subtle shift which fixed and flummoxed Ollie Sleightholme led to an eye-catching assist, his passing was varied and slick, and his aerial presence wrought havoc, right to the end when it earned the Wallabies one last shot at glory, which they took so well, for a winning try finished with a flourish by Max Jorgensen.
If only that last restart had not gone the way of so many others, England would have been able to enjoy a problem-solving triumph, after Maro Itoje had touched down seconds earlier from a desperate drive for redemption. Instead, Australia snatched it all away again.
The home defence was savagely exposed by the Wallabies’ slick footwork and offloading. The loss of Felix Jones is being keenly felt. Joe El Abd is racing to impose himself and his version of the blitz strategy, but to say there are teething problems is a glaring understatement.
Amid all the angst about another avoidable setback, there were bright spots. Chandler Cunningham-South was a two-try force of nature, Ollie Lawrence was much more involved as a gainline weapon, Smith’s clever, deft kicks and chips worked wonders, and the first English try was a super strike.
The handling from George — who was magnificent in the initial onslaught — Ellis Genge, Tom Curry and Ben Earl was simply outstanding. It was a showcase of team fluency, cohesion and skill.
But to fall away so badly was alarming. There is an inescapable sense that something just isn’t right. If there isn’t a dramatic turnaround in the coming days, England appear doomed to another ordeal next weekend, which should prompt a tough post-campaign review, not a cosy, box-ticking exercise.
It was precisely because of Marcus Smith’s sparky, instinctive brilliance that England almost found a way out of the hole they had dug themselves
And whatever conclusions the RFU reach should be published for all to see.
The public are funding their national team by paying a pretty penny for tickets and shirts, over-priced beers and various TV subscriptions, so they are quite entitled to be informed about how it is being run and why it is falling a long way short of all reasonable expectations.
Sua’ali’i is going to earn a fortune
Suaalii has become an instant icon. That was his first game of professional rugby union and he made it look like a stroll in the park. Imagine how good he will be when he’s properly settled in.
The cross-code rookie is blessed with freakish physical attributes and is already destined to be a poster-boy for the Lions tour of Australia next summer, then the World Cup in 2027 Down Under. He seems humble but also armed with formidable self-belief.
Asked after Saturday’s game whether he had any nerves or apprehension at all, given that he was being thrown in at the deep end, he was bemused by the very notion. He was also utterly unfazed by the relentless fanfare about him back at home.
Here’s a prediction which doesn’t require a crystal ball; Sua’ali’i is going to earn a fortune. Sponsors will be jostling to promote him. His arrival is not just good news for the Wallabies, it is good news for the whole sport.
Sua’ali’i has become an instant icon. That was his first game of professional rugby union and he made it look like a stroll in the park
The cross-code rookie is blessed with freakish physical attributes and is already destined to be a poster-boy for the Lions tour of Australia next summer
Last word
Ben O’Keeffe’s failure to stop the game at Twickenham after seeing Tom Curry lying unconscious on the pitch during the first half has led to understandable outrage.
This column has no wish to incite criticism of referees, who have a fiendishly difficult, pressurised job to do, but in this case the Kiwi was at fault for not halting the contest faster to allow England’s stricken flanker to be treated and assessed by medics.
It took an intervention by Australia’s Rob Valetini – whose knee had made contact, accidentally, with Curry’s head as he carried into contact – to force O’Keeffe to blow the whistle, so the Sale openside could receive urgent help. Replays showed the official glance down at Curry, who was lying motionless, before moving on.
Rugby is desperately striving to combat the spectre of head trauma, so such a response to an unfortunate incident is not acceptable. Aside from that aberration, O’Keeffe ran proceedings well and should be commended for consistently clamping down on time-wasting, in line with welcome new directives.
