England delivered a performance that did more than secure a 45-22 victory over Australia at Twickenham on Sunday; it offered a forceful response to questions swirling around head coach Steve Borthwick. The team’s visible intensity and willingness to take risks provided the kind of evidence senior players had promised in the wake of a newspaper report suggesting a rift between the squad and their coach during the summer tour to Argentina. England bounce back under Borthwick was the theme of the afternoon, as the hosts produced a display that married physicality with ambition and gave the 81,334 crowd plenty to applaud.
A week of scrutiny, an afternoon of release
The build-up had been dominated by that reported disconnect, which the senior players denied while vowing to let their rugby do the talking. That was a gamble, particularly with memories of February’s 42-21 defeat to Ireland at the same stadium still fresh. Another flat, disjointed showing would have intensified the pressure on Borthwick. Instead, his players turned up with a purpose that was evident from the third minute, when Ben Earl loudly celebrated a scrum success, and carried through to the final whistle.
The energy was not confined to Earl. Jamie George roared into the stands after the opening score, Maro Itoje was mobbed after an early charge-down, and Henry Slade was embraced following a lung-busting late tackle on Max Jorgensen that saved a try. It was the kind of body language that had once been mockingly labelled “plastic energy” by South Africa hooker Bongi Mbonambi after the 2023 World Cup semi-final. Yet against Australia it felt like something more substantial: a team playing with intent and belief.
Feyi-Waboso lights up the first half
The standout individual was Immanuel Feyi-Waboso, whose first-half display was electric. The Exeter wing carried eight times for 113 metres and beat seven defenders in 40 minutes, figures no other England player matched despite him not returning after the break. His ankle was caught under prop Angus Bell’s weight, and he watched the second half from the sidelines in a protective boot. Given that Feyi-Waboso missed the entire Six Nations campaign, the decision not to remove him immediately may be revisited once the prognosis is known.
England had looked to exploit his pace and unpredictability, feeding him on a dart off the blindside wing from one promising line-out position. His fitness, along with that of Seb Atkinson, will be chief among Borthwick’s concerns ahead of next week’s meeting with Japan and potentially beyond.
Furbank and Slade pull the strings
George Furbank, playing his first Test in nearly two years, reminded everyone of his ball-playing ability. His line, dummy and offload created Jack van Poortvliet’s try in a moment that cut the Wallabies apart. Slade and Atkinson also pulled strings expertly, while Ben Curry’s leap out of the line to hit fly-half Declan Meredith was a satisfyingly old-school moment of gainline physicality. The bravery to throw the final pass rather than take the safe option was a recurring feature.
Henry Pollock, sporting freshly peroxided hair, came off the bench and stole the spotlight with two tries in a cameo on the wing. But Pollock is a stop-gap in that position; Feyi-Waboso is the star. The bench maintained England’s dominance, with an all-Lions front row of Ellis Genge, Luke Cowan-Dickie and Will Stuart entering to turn the screw. England conceded only seven penalties and avoided a card for just the second time this year, while their breakdown work was quick and clean.
Borthwick's pride and the caveats
Borthwick told BBC Sport he was “really proud” of a group he described as wonderful to work with, highlighting the balance between a young core of players aged 25 and under and an older group guiding them. The victory was a welcome end to a difficult week, but caveats remain. Australia were desperately poor, with their players distracted by a pay dispute with Rugby Australia. New Zealand, rejuvenated under new coach Dave Rennie, will provide a far more formidable stress test in a fortnight.
For now, though, England can savour a win built on the kind of energy that answers doubters, even if it does not silence every question.
