The two England call-ups that most surprised Clive Woodward and the Steve Borthwick ‘step’ that has made him a ‘little nervous’
Clive Woodward has been speaking about England boss Steve Borthwick and, inset, Caden Murley
Former England coach Clive Woodward has claimed that two of Steve Borthwick’s inclusions for Saturday’s Six Nations match away to Italy have left him surprised.
With the English hammered by Scotland and Ireland in their most recent outings, head coach Borthwick reacted by making wholesale changes to his side, nine personnel and three positional.
It’s a mass upheaval that Woodword explained he would never have considered taking during his time in charge. He felt that the losses experienced in three successive Six Nations Grand Slam games were one-off defeats rather than evidence that something was rotten.
However, while he admires Borthwick’s chutzpah in taking a sledgehammer to the England team hammered 42-21 by Ireland in Round Three on February 21, he has taken exception to a couple of the switches made.
“Serious pressure…”
Writing in Sportsmail ahead of the Stadio Olimpico encounter, Woodward said: “I’m surprised there’s no place for George Furbank at full-back and that there are starts for Cadan Murley on the wing and Elliot Daly at No 15.
“Seb Atkinson, Daly and Murley haven’t played a second in the Six Nations so far, and Atkinson has never appeared in the Championship.”
Woodward has been an admirer of Furbank for quite some time and had revealed, following the last outing at Twickenham, that he had unexpectedly met the Northampton full-back at a function at the ground.
Daly at 15, though, in place of Freddie Steward wouldn’t have been a surprise to ex-England No.10 Stuart Barnes, as he predicted that the Saracens player’s versatility was something that favoured him getting the selection nod for Rome. So it came to pass.
Whatever the identity of the individuals, though, there was no disguising Woodward’s belief that England, as a team, were under massive pressure heading into Round Four having won just one of their three matches so far and facing an Italian team that is looking greatly improved this year.
“Make no bones about it, England will be going to Rome under serious pressure to perform. There is so much riding on this game for Borthwick,” reckoned Woodward, the 2003 Rugby World Cup-winning coach, about an XV fielding the most changes an England coach has ever made in the Six Nations from one round to the next.
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“Chopping and changing the team a lot is something I don’t fundamentally like, but the reality is England’s players haven’t performed at all in the defeats by Scotland and Ireland.
“It would have been easy for Borthwick to make minor tweaks to his squad here and there and keep faith with the guys he knows well like George Ford.
“I do admire him ripping up the team. But as an international coach, selection is your No.1 skill and Borthwick is holding his hands up and admitting he has got it badly wrong to date.
“The huge number of changes means Borthwick will now live or die by this team. If England win the game – and it doesn’t matter how – then he will be a hero and his big selection calls will be justified. If England lose to Italy for the first time, he’ll be a zero.
“That’s the reality of what’s to come this weekend. I don’t think it’s an exaggeration to say Rome may well prove to be a defining game for Borthwick in one way or another…”
“By acting as he has midway through the championship, Borthwick has sent a very clear message that the past two matches haven’t been good enough. England’s players have to take that on the chin and show him their worth.
“When you’re under pressure as a coach, you tend to revert back to what you know and not take a step into the unknown. But Borthwick has gone for the latter, and I must admit that does make me a little nervous!
“It’s really hard to know what to expect from this England team – it’s an exciting prospect on paper, but not necessarily for all the right reasons.”
Predicting a five-point win for England, Woodward concluded: “Italy are a fine and dangerous team. They’ll be licking their lips at the prospect of a big upset.
“Borthwick has been badly let down by his players in the past two matches. So at the Stadio Olimpico, he really, really needs the likes of Ellis Genge, Jamie George and captain Maro Itoje to step up and deliver.
“If England’s forward pack goes well, then England should still have enough to win. I’m expecting a big game from Itoje, who hasn’t been at the races so far.”
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