A team with England’s rugby resources, both playing and financial, ought to be ambitious and there is nothing fundamentally wrong with aiming high. We can’t let the noise in now.”‘Awful’ defenceFor two games in a row, England’s defence has been ruthlessly exposed, with both Scotland and Ireland scoring a flurry of early tries. “The spacing is all wrong,” wrote former England centre Will Greenwood in his Daily Telegraph column, with the 2003 World Cup-winner adding: “The defence was abject, awful. “George has done so much good for England for such a long period of time,” Borthwick told a post-match press conference. But he must now decide if Ford keeps the No 10 shirt when England resume their Six Nations campaign against Italy in Rome on March 7.

Source: The Herald February 23, 2026 11:30 UTC