Four players England should drop - and who Steve Borthwick should replace them with

Rugby News
Saturday, 01 February 2025 at 20:07
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Ireland turned on the style in the second half to kick off their bid for an unprecedented third successive Six Nations title with a statement win over England in Dublin.
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Steve Borthwick’s side had looked up for the fight early on, with debutant Cadan Murley crossing to give the visitors a deserved half-time lead. However, once Ireland hit their stride, there was only ever going to be one winner.
Jamison Gibson-Park’s first-half try kept the defending champions in the contest, but after the break, Bundee Aki, Tadhg Beirne and Dan Sheehan powered over to seal a dominant bonus-point victory for Simon Easterby in his first game as interim head coach.
For England, it’s a sixth defeat in seven matches under Borthwick and a baptism of fire for Maro Itoje in his first game since replacing Jamie George as captain.
With a crucial clash against France at the Allianz Stadium up next, here are four changes Borthwick must consider.

#1. Freddie Steward

Telegraph 4/10: "His worst nightmare of facing a scrum half in open space recurred as Gibson-Park did him dirty as badly as Grant Williams had. England need more than a safety blanket at full back."
Replacement: George Hendy

#2. Cadan Murley

Planet Rugby 4/10: "Had a great moment early on when he scored a debut try but a bit rabbit in the headlights after that. Made a couple of errors no Test player should ever really make, quite frankly. Murley should be backed next weekend as you can see the talent and potential, but it was a big learning curve in Dublin"
Guardian 5/10: "Quickly snaffled a try on debut, but later invited pressure on teammates twice with a serious lack of composure in defence."
Telegraph 4/10: "After what set to be a dream debut, scoring a try after eight minutes, Ireland turned his life into a nightmare, forcing into some horrible naive errors."
Evening Standard 5/10: "Got off to a flyer on his debut by scoring inside the opening 10 minutes. Had a tough second half, though, and was shaky on kick defence. Did assist Curry’s try."
Replacement: Tom Roebuck

#3. Alex Mitchell

Planet Rugby 5/10: " Kicking was good in the first half and he brought some good tempo to the game, but Mitchell struggled to control the game after the interval."
Telegraph 5/10: "Done all ends up after showing Lowe the outside for Gibson-Park’s try. A few other uncharacteristic errors but then England’s attack stopped functioning when he went off."
The Sun 5/10: "Returning scrum half brought calmness but the missed tackle on Lowe, just as Smith was getting ready to return, was critical."
Replacement: Harry Randall

#4. Ben Earl

Mail Online 5/10: "Dropped restart after England's early opener but one strong ruck clear-out showed his menace. Made way for Saracens team-mate Tom Willis."
Rugby Pass 5/10: "The third openside in the England back row, he was eclipsed by what the Curry twins achieved and gone by the 56th minute. While a show of wheels helped lead to the penalty that got England 10-5 up just before the break, some rearguard work wasn’t up to scratch. For instance, his soft knock-on at the 7-0 restart. There were also too many missed tackles."
Replacement: Tom Willis

Editors Picks:

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