England's fix-ups - what's on Borthwick's to-do list this winter?

Five wins from 12 Tests. Five unanswered defeats against Rugby Championship sides. A satellite ranking that has slipped from 5th to seventh implicit the people of 12 months.

The numbers person not been what England wanted. After a tally to the Rugby World Cup semi-finals successful 2023, the anticipation that England would find stableness and individuality successful 2024 has not been realised.

Instead, with a small implicit 2 months to spell earlier a mammoth Six Nations commencement distant to Ireland, caput manager Steve Borthwick has a big of reparis to tally connected his side.

For overmuch of their France 2023 campaign, the connection from England’s campy was to absorption connected their results. As a drawstring of scrappy displays pushed them though the weaker broadside of the draw, past Samoa, Japan and Fiji, unit stressed that triumph was everything.

In a knockout tournament, with constricted build-up nether a caller coach, they were right.

But excessively often this year, the other has been true. England person been emphasising show positives beneath a antagonistic scoreboard.

England's triumph implicit Japan ended a tally of 5 consecutive defeats, but opening fixtures against Ireland and France successful the Six Nations mean they volition person to amended accelerated if it is not to beryllium a little blip successful a losing streak.

Borthwick vowed aft the summertime circuit of New Zealand that England would get connected the close broadside of constrictive scorelines. So far, turning those losses into victories has been an alchemy beyond England.

"The adjacent measurement for this England squad is to enactment retired however bash you triumph the Six Nations," said erstwhile England fly-half Paul Grayson connected Rugby Union Weekly.

"How bash you get implicit the hump of playing Ireland away? Coming adjacent against them oregon this France broadside is OK, but the adjacent measurement is you person to bushed those teams.

"You don't person to triumph a Grand Slam but you person to beryllium successful the speech to triumph the title successful the past round.

"England person not been successful that presumption successful caller times and genuine progression is knocking connected the doorway for silverware."

With the gully for the 2027 Rugby World Cup to instrumentality spot successful aboriginal 2026, a emergence up the rankings successful 2025 would beryllium timely.

England's existent presumption means being paired with a higher-ranked squad successful 1 of the six four-team pools successful Australia.

Captain Jamie George has dealt with a hard autumn with honesty.

Asked whether defence was the biggest occupation to hole earlier the Six Nations, helium didn't duck.

"If I'm honest, yeah," helium replied.

"We're beauteous wide connected however we privation to beryllium but executing it... I deliberation we're astir apt 80% of the clip doing it and 20% of the clip we're not. We request to find a solution arsenic to why."

England conceded an mean of 4 tries a lucifer crossed their autumn meetings with New Zealand, Australia and South Africa.

Even Japan, good disconnected the world's elite currently, scored two, unlocking an seemingly well-set England defence with alarming ease.

The Brave Blossoms ended the lucifer having made much metres with shot successful hand, and having matched England for enactment breaks, with six each.

Overall, of 10 Rugby Championship and Six Nations teams, lone Argentina and Wales person conceded much points each clip the absorption participate their 22m this twelvemonth than England.

"England conscionable get done successful defence excessively easily," added Grayson. "Japan didn't person a batch going for them different than vigor and immoderate decent shape.

"They were underpowered successful virtually each constituent connected the tract and inactive conjured up enactment breaks."

England person seemed acceptable connected a high-tempo defence system, based connected enactment velocity and applying unit to the opposition's skills.

Are these conscionable inevitable teething problems arsenic it beds in? Or is it fundamentally unsuited to England's players and the magnitude of clip they walk together?

Joe El-Abd is the antheral tasked with uncovering answers to those questions.

The 44-year-old, a erstwhile assemblage housemate of Borthwick's, has been successful spot arsenic defence manager for a small implicit a month.

But, present the autumn internationals are over, his absorption is elsewhere.

On Friday, helium volition beryllium fulfilling his caput manager duties for French second-tier broadside Oyonnax against Stade Montois as portion of a job-sharing statement struck by the Rugby Football Union.

The antithetic statement is partially a merchandise of the haste with which the RFU needed to regenerate Irishman Felix Jones who discontinue arsenic defence manager successful August, aft lone 7 months successful the post.

With Jones being held to a 12-month announcement period, England are near successful the concern that they person 2 defence coaches connected the books; one, with nary erstwhile planetary experience, juggling 2 jobs, the other, with acquisition of winning back-to-back Rugby World Cups, seemingly under-employed arsenic helium remotely feeds into England's analysts.

"Joe El-Abd's assignment was near tract and his squad [currently 14th retired of 16] is not doing that good successful the 2nd part of France," said erstwhile England helping Chris Ashton connected Rugby Union Weekly.

"He is portion clip and England's defence is not looking great."

Grayson believes the concern is successful portion of England's making, with alteration the lone changeless successful the coaching set-up, 2 years connected from Borthwick replacing Eddie Jones.

"There has been truthful overmuch alteration with England successful presumption of backroom unit that it is precise hard to enactment connected connection erstwhile the connection changes each the time," helium said.

"How tin you get consistency?

"And bash you get immoderate dispensation for the magnitude of change? Or bash you look and accidental wherefore person those radical gone?

"Clearly successful immoderate concern the turnover of that galore unit volition person an interaction connected the output of the radical doing it."

Marcus Smith has been the originative unit down England this autumn. The fly-half is archetypal receiver and the archetypal constituent of telephone erstwhile England request inspiration.

Only New Zealand's Beauden Barrett and Japan's Dylan Riley person been progressive successful much tries for top-tier Test nations than Smith this year. The Harlequins prima is besides a dazzling moving threat.

New Zealand's Mark Telea, France's Damian Penaud, Japan's Malo Tuitama and Scotland brace Duhan van der Merwe and Kyle Rowe, each wings, are the exclusive nine to person topped Smith's complaint of beating 4.5 defenders each 80 minutes successful 2024.

But, overall, England's attack, lacking fluidity and accuracy, has not travel live nether him.

Whether that is Smith's fault, his team-mates' oregon a operation of some parties and a clash of styles, is hard to unravel.

Ben Youngs told the For the Love of Rugby podcast, external that England really improved successful immoderate aspects of onslaught with Northampton's Fin Smith astatine 10 and pondered whether Marcus mightiness suit the squad amended astatine full-back.

His chap erstwhile England scrum-half Danny Care - Smith's Harlequins half-back spouse - disagreed.

"The onslaught volition instrumentality time," he told Rugby Union Weekly.

"The backline person had those 4 games present which is perfect, truthful they cognize what went good and what didn't.

"I deliberation England person the imaginable to person 1 of the champion backlines successful the satellite with clip and the guys they've got."

Smith has go specified a steadfast favourite of the Twickenham crowd, with the imaginable of his being replaced raising murmurs of discontent successful the nonaccomplishment against Australia, it would beryllium a large determination to displacement him retired of the 10 spot, ne'er caput seat him.