'England's challenge now is to start beating the best'

An world play that started connected 5 August successful Cardiff ended for England connected Saturday successful Auckland pinch a emotion of deja vu successful nan air.

Just for illustration in Dunedin a week earlier, England had stayed successful nan conflict admirably successful nan first half, rallying either broadside of nan break to return power and frighten to propulsion disconnected a historical win, earlier frustratingly fading successful nan last 4th arsenic nan All Blacks chair proved decisive.

So really should England supporters position nan 2-0 bid defeat? A circuit that showed Steve Borthwick’s broadside are moving successful nan correct direction? Or a immense missed opportunity?

“Absolutely both,” said skipper Jamie George, who led nan group pinch favoritism connected his first circuit arsenic captain.

England person played South Africa, Ireland and France complete nan past 8 months, successful summation to 2 games against New Zealand. The aggregate people against these apical 4 sides successful nan world is 101-111, pinch 1 constrictive triumph and 4 constrictive defeats.

“We are decidedly trending successful nan correct direction,” vice-captain Henry Slade said.

“We are pushing nan apical 4 sides now and getting amended and amended week by week.”

The situation for England now is to get connected nan correct broadside of these tussles.

“I don’t want to revisit mistakes,” reflected Borthwick connected Sunday successful downtown Auckland, soon earlier starting nan agelong travel location via Sydney and Singapore.

“In each of those games, we’ve been successful a position precocious successful nan crippled successful a starring position connected nan scoreboard.”

There are immoderate cardinal areas wherever England request to amended if they are to go a genuine unit connected nan world stage.

Keeping nan scoreboard moving erstwhile matches tighten up – England scored only 3 second-half points successful Auckland and 5 successful Dunedin – arsenic good arsenic shoring up nan scrum and being much streetwise are each areas highlighted by Borthwick.

“Test matches astatine this level are tight encounters, they are decided mostly by a punishment aliases a drop-goal, 1 moment, 1 missed kick,” he said.

“That is nan quality of it and nan players person knowledgeable that, we are going to beryllium amended for it. Every 1 of these has to beryllium a learning experience.”

After relying connected an older halfway to scope nan World Cup semi-finals past year, Borthwick says 2024 has been nan “second phase” of his tenure arsenic he goes astir building a caller team.

“So acold successful these 8 Tests [in 2024] we person had 8 caller caps,” he explained.

There is younker each crossed nan backline. Immanuel Feyi-Waboso is 21. Fin Smith 22. Ollie Sleightholme, 24, made his debut successful New Zealand.

Up front, 22-year-old Fin Baxter has travel through. Chandler Cunningham-South astatine 21 and George Martin, only conscionable 23, person continued to emerge. Experience, though, wins tight Test matches. And while Borthwick and his coaches can’t bargain experience, they purpose to accelerate nan players’ learning.

“The England battalion has changed from what was traditionally a very large powerful battalion to much of a younger, move pack,” Borthwick explained.

“You tin spot that younger battalion developing. I request to coach them arsenic accelerated arsenic I can.”

While extent is building successful immoderate areas, different positions still look ray pinch tight-head prop of peculiar concern. Too overmuch is being asked of 37-year-old Dan Cole, who has now won much caps astatine prop than immoderate different Englishman.

The scrum creaked successful some Tests against nan All Blacks.

“I’ll person a speech pinch Coley and spot what he wants to do," said Borthwick. "But rather intelligibly we request to find immoderate much tight-heads. That’s going to beryllium a large improvement project.

“Will Stuart has done really good successful nan past mates of Tests. The New Zealand scrum is very bully and extracurricular nan scrum I thought he did galore things very well.

“Part of my adjacent measurement is to do that benignant of readying and determine connected nan correct point to do. I’m trying to person consistency successful action and build nan number of caps, not conscionable individually but together, truthful we maximise nan cohesion.

“That’s intelligibly pinch a longer-term extremity successful mind but we request results now arsenic well. That’s ever a situation nan England caput coach has. We request results now and we request to beryllium preparing for respective years successful advance.”

Behind nan scrum, England request much back-up to Alex Mitchell astatine number nine, pinch neither Harry Randall aliases Ben Spencer fixed overmuch crippled time. Mitchell played nan full 80 minutes successful Auckland.

At fly-half Marcus Smith was trusted pinch moving nan broadside passim nan tour, and while he missed immoderate important kicks successful nan first Test against New Zealand, he excelled successful Tokyo against Japan and group up 3 of England’s 4 tries against nan All Blacks.

Namesake Fin came disconnected nan chair doubly but didn’t person agelong capable to enforce himself.

“I thought Marcus has done immoderate really bully things, erstwhile you spot nan expertise he has to spot space, to create tries, to unfastened up a defence,” Borthwick said.

Meanwhile, nan England leader was unequivocal erstwhile asked whether 96-cap George Ford still had a domiciled to play aft missing nan circuit done injury. If Ford returns to shape and fitness, he could good deterioration number 10 again successful nan autumn.

“He is world people and I thought his capacity successful nan Six Nations was exceptional,” Borthwick said.

“The 3 of them - Fin Smith, George Ford and Marcus - it puts america successful a beautiful enviable position.”

England’s players will now get a minimum five-week break earlier returning to their clubs. The caller Professional Game Partnership betwixt clubs and nan Rugby Football Union has been agreed, which will springiness Borthwick somewhat much power complete a halfway group of 20 aliases truthful players.

Their adjacent duty successful a achromatic jersey will beryllium astatine Twickenham successful November pinch - fittingly - nan All Blacks first up.

“We beryllium them one,” said George.

“To get nan results we request to beryllium tactically smart and we’ve sewage to beryllium really good organised,” continued Borthwick.

“But fundamentally, there's sewage to beryllium thing that sits underneath each that and that is nan conflict and tone that we person wrong nan team.

“What you spot successful this England squad now is conflict and spirit, and we request to make judge that gives america a bully instauration for everything we do going forward.”