Steve Borthwick has made his intentions clear. England’s head coach is done experimenting, done juggling attacking philosophies, and done bending to the noise. Against Australia at Twickenham on Saturday, he’s reverting to type. The Borthwick blueprint is back: a hard-edged, physically dominant, and territorially ruthless England, built around structure, precision and power.
That means George Ford, the cerebral conductor of Borthwick’s Leicester and England sides, wears the No 10 shirt once more. Northampton’s Fin Smith drops to the bench, while Harlequins playmaker Marcus Smith, so often the figurehead of England’s flirtation with flair, has been omitted entirely. It is a decisive call, one that signals exactly the kind of England Borthwick wants heading into a critical autumn campaign.
“George led superbly in the summer,” Borthwick said this week. “We’ve built combinations that are growing in understanding, and this match is another step forward for us.”
After last November’s wild 42–37 defeat to Australia, when England were ripped open late on in a chaotic finish, Borthwick wants control. Ford offers that in spades. His game management, kicking variety and composure under pressure define what Borthwick sees as winning rugby. Expect England to play for territory, squeeze Australia with an unrelenting kicking game and dominate the air through Freddie Steward, Immanuel Feyi-Waboso and Tom Roebuck.
This is not a team built to dazzle. It’s one built to suffocate. Borthwick’s selections show a clear emphasis on defensive shape, tactical discipline and aerial mastery. Steward returns at fullback, the defensive linchpin and high-ball specialist around whom England’s backfield is organised. On the wings, Sale’s Roebuck and Exeter’s Feyi-Waboso provide punch and pace, two powerhouse wingers who can chase kicks and win collisions whilst providing a sprinkling of magic dust.
In midfield, Tommy Freeman’s shift to outside centre is perhaps the boldest call of the week, but not one without logic. Freeman, all long stride and powerful fend, forms an all-Northampton Saints axis with Fraser Dingwall, a partnership Borthwick has increasingly trusted. Dingwall brings calm decision-making and defensive alignment, Freeman brings strike running and power in traffic.
Scrum-half Alex Mitchell partners with Ford to continue England’s Saints heavy backline. The pair’s kicking control, both off the tee and in open play, fits the plan. England will aim to trap Australia in their own half, force errors, and attack through structured pressure rather than chaos.
The shift in selection is as much philosophical as tactical. Marcus Smith’s omission underlines Borthwick’s belief that England’s route to success lies not in chasing a romantic ideal of running rugby but in winning the fundamentals. Power up front, clarity at halfback, accuracy in the air.
The back row echoes that identity. Bath’s Sam Underhill and Guy Pepper start alongside Ben Earl, forming a bruising, relentless trio. Pepper, just 22, has been rewarded for his abrasive displays in Argentina and the United States, his strong carrying and breakdown work earning him the nod ahead of the fit-again Tom Curry. Earl’s athleticism and tempo complete a unit built to outmuscle the Wallabies and deny them quick ball.
Up front, Maro Itoje captains the side alongside Ollie Chessum in the engine room, while Bevan Rodd, Jamie George and Joe Heyes anchor a pack that will look to bully Australia at the set piece. On the bench, Luke Cowan-Dickie is set to earn his 50th cap — a player Borthwick praised as “a fierce competitor who gives absolutely everything.” His return, alongside Ellis Genge and Curry, adds heavyweight reinforcement for the closing stages.
For Ford, this feels like a resurgence rather than a reprieve. The Sale Sharks fly-half guided England to a clean sweep in the summer, showing the kind of tactical control that Borthwick prizes. While others toured with the Lions, Ford was England’s on-field general, steadying a young group and steering them to an impressive series win in Argentina.
That leadership has been rewarded. It’s a mark of Borthwick’s loyalty to his lieutenants that Ford is trusted to guide the side again from the start, with Fin Smith held in reserve. The 21-year-old Northampton playmaker remains central to England’s long-term plans, but for now, Borthwick wants Ford’s experience.
England’s last meeting with Australia at Twickenham ended in farce. A loose defensive effort, poor discipline, and a lack of composure saw them concede a late try and fall 42–37. It was a performance that exposed the fragility of England’s balance, torn between high-risk attack and Borthwick’s instinctive conservatism.
There will be no such ambiguity this time. England will look to dictate terms early, hammering the gain line and dominating territory. With two strong tactical kickers in Ford and Mitchell, and three aerial specialists in the backfield, expect a barrage of contestable kicks to test Australia’s composure.
Freeman and Dingwall will be crucial in transition, linking England’s kicking game to their attacking shape. Both are excellent readers of broken play, and in combination with Earl’s work rate and Feyi-Waboso’s explosiveness, they could give England an edge on counter-attack.
In many ways, this team feels like the start of Borthwick’s England 2.0, refining the strategy that yielded a Premiership title with the Leicester Tigers. The selections reward form and trust rather than reputation, and the tactical direction is clear. He is backing his type of rugby, the kind that frustrates purists but wins matches.
Eddie Jones, now back in charge of Japan, summed it up this week when asked about his successor. “He’s starting to build a really effective style,” Jones said. “They played some really good rugby against Argentina — pragmatic, very efficient, tough, keep-at-it, all the attributes that Steve had as a player.”
That word, efficient, feels central to England’s current identity. They will not outgun Australia with flair, but they will aim to choke them with structure. The message is clear: this is Borthwick’s England, built in his image, uncompromising and unflashy.
Saturday’s clash will test whether that approach can still win at the highest level. The Twickenham crowd, restless for signs of evolution, will expect control, power, and precision. Borthwick will demand nothing less.
England Team To Face Australia
15 Freddie Steward, 14 Tom Roebuck, 13 Tommy Freeman, 12, Fraser Dingwall, 11 Immanuel Feyi-Waboso, 10 George Ford, 9 Alex Mitchell; 1 Fin Baxter, 2 Jamie George, 3 Joe Heyes, 4 Maro Itoje (c), 5 Ollie Chessum, 6 Guy Pepper, 7 Sam Underhill, 8 Ben Earl.
Replacements: 16 Luke Cowan-Dickie, 17 Ellis Genge, 18 Will Stuart, 19 Alex Coles, 20 Tom Curry, 21 Henry Pollock, 22 Ben Spencer, 23 Fin Smith.