England vs Italy LIVE: Result and reaction from Six Nations as England seal big win to stay in title hunt
England 47-24 Italy: A superb attacking display from Steve Borthwick’s side kept their title hopes alive heading into the final weekend
England cut loose to keep their Six Nations title hopes alive with a seven-try, 49-24 win over a hapless Italy.
Narrow victories over France and Scotland served as overdue tight successes for Steve Borthwick’s side, though they themselves have conceded that they had been yet to produce their best in this campaign. This, then, felt like a significant step forward as the hosts showed far more attacking ambition, eventually putting Italy to the sword after a helter-skelter first half.
Borthwick had left Marcus Smith on the bench and dropped Henry Slade entirely for the visit of the Azzurri, but were forced into an early backline reshuffle after injury to Ollie Lawrence. Smith’s arrival and a star performance from Elliot Daly, moved to outside centre, opened up England’s attacking game, allowing them to pile up the points as the Azzurri suffered another damaging day. The shipping of 11 tries in Rome against France punctured the optimism that had surrounded Gonzalo Quesada’s squad and this felt like another significant step back.
Re-live all of the actionn from Allianz Stadium, Twickenham in our live blog below:
How England hope to unlock their attacking game — by dropping Marcus Smith
It is a selection that has caused a stir, so why has Steve Borthwick left Marcus Smith on the bench?
How England hope to unlock their attacking game — by dropping Marcus Smith
Italy team news
Italy are able to bring back a fit-again Monty Ioane into a remodelled back three that also includes Sidcup-born Matt Gallagher, with the former England U20 international in line for a Six Nations debut on the wing. Stephen Varney is also brought in at scrum half as Martin Page-Relo and Tommaso Allan drops out of the starting backline, while Giacomo Nicotera and Marco Riccioni join Danilo Fischetti in the front row. Exeter’s Ross Vintcent swaps in at No 8 for Lorenzo Cannone.
Italy XV: 1 Danilo Fischetti, 2 Giacomo Nicotera, 3 Marco Riccioni; 4 Niccolo Cannone, 5 Federico Ruzza; 6 Sebastian Negri, 7 Michele Lamaro (capt.), 8 Ross Vintcent; 9 Stephen Varney, 10 Paolo Garbisi; 11 Matt Gallagher, 12 Tommaso Menoncello, 13 Juan Ignacio Brex, 14 Monty Ioane; 15 Ange Capuozzo.
Replacements: 16 Gianmarco Lucchesi, 17 Mirco Spagnolo, 18 Simone Ferrari, 19 Riccardo Favretto, 20 Manuel Zuliani, 21 Lorenzo Cannone; 22 Martin Page-Relo, 23 Tommaso Allan.
England team news
Steve Borthwick has made significant tweaks to the England backline, with Marcus Smith dropped to the bench and Henry Slade axed entirely. Elliot Daly is brought in at full-back, making his first start at the position in Test rugby for four years, while Fraser Dingwall partners Ollie Lawrence in the centres. On the occasion of his 100th cap, Jamie George is elevated to the starting side as Luke Cowan-Dickie fulfils the bench hooker role that the former captain has played well over the last two weeks.
England XV: 1 Ellis Genge; 2 Jamie George, 3 Will Stuart; 4 Maro Itoje (capt.), 5 Ollie Chessum; 6 Tom Curry, 7 Ben Earl, 8 Tom Willis; 9 Alex Mitchell, 10 Fin Smith; 11 Ollie Sleightholme, 12 Fraser Dingwall, 13 Ollie Lawrence, 14 Tommy Freeman; 15 Elliot Daly.
Replacements: 16 Luke Cowan-Dickie, 17 Fin Baxter, 18 Joe Heyes, 19 Ted Hill, 20 Chandler Cunningham-South, 21 Ben Curry; 22 Jack van Poortvliet, 23 Marcus Smith.
Honest Jamie George opens up on losing England captaincy: ‘I felt like I had a lot more to give’
It was the very start of an England career that, on Sunday afternoon, will reach a special milestone which underscores the value of patience and resilience to Jamie George. The front rower will raise his bat against Italy as he wins cap No 100, in doing so becoming the first male English hooker to compile a century as the heart and soul of his side.
Honest Jamie George reflects on losing England captaincy: ‘I had more to give’
England vs Italy talking points: Azzurri seek a reaction
Italy have never beaten England in 31 previous meetings and their 73-24 rout by France in round three suggests a seismic upset will be beyond them on this occasion. Head coach Gonzalo Quesada is looking for a reaction after the high of beating Wales in round two was immediately diffused by a rampant Les Bleus and has made six changes to shake things up, including Ange Capuozzo moving from wing to full-back and Stephen Varney’s return at scrum-half. The quality centre pairing of Tommaso Menoncello and Juan Ignacio Brex remains, however, and will continue to present Italy’s greatest threat.
England vs Italy talking points: More needed from Borthwick's men
England have been propelled into title contention by dispatching France and Scotland, finally discovering the ability to close out tight games after a year of near-misses, but they will be demanding more from themselves over the final two rounds. They have failed to convince in any of this year’s outings and must show against the tournament’s two weakest opponents over the next two weekends that they have more in the locker than graft and a willingness to fight until the final whistle.
England vs Italy talking points: 100 not out
There will be few more popular Test centurions than Jamie George – and few more durable either. George becomes the seventh England player to win 100 caps and, apart from the statistic that matters most today, an array of other numbers illustrate his standing in the game. George is the most successful line-out thrower in Six Nations history with a 91.8 percent success rate and, since making his debut in 2015, he has been in action more than any other top-tier hooker, with his 4,817 minutes eclipsing his closest rival, Argentina’s Julian Montoya, by 539 minutes. He is fourth in the try-scoring list for hookers, has made more tackles than any of his rivals and has gained the fourth highest amount of metres. It is a mighty contribution and he deserves his moment in the spotlight.
England vs Italy talking points: Oh when the Saints...
Fraser Dingwall’s return has lifted the number of Northampton players in England’s backline to five – a total that might have risen further had George Furbank been fit. The under-performing Henry Slade has been removed from the midfield in the hope that the familiarity between Dingwall and half-backs Alex Mitchell and Fin Smith, as well as wings Tommy Freeman and Ollie Sleightholme, will provide the creative spark that was missing against France and Scotland.
England vs Italy talking points: Smith the sub supercharger
“I’m looking forward to unleashing him when there’s a bit of fatigue on the pitch” were the words head coach Steve Borthwick used to sugar coat Marcus Smith’s removal from the starting XV, but there is no masking the Harlequins playmaker’s fall from grace. From starting fly-half for eight successive Tests and linchpin of the team, then shunted to full-back and now on the bench, Smith’s stock has fallen sharply. A place on the British and Irish Lions tour is in danger of slipping away and he must demonstrate against Italy why he would still be an asset against Australia this summer.
Sub role for Smith and George joins 100 club – England v Italy talking points
Maro Itoje hits back at Will Carling over criticism of England coaches
England captain Maro Itoje has pushed back against former skipper Will Carling’s claims that Steve Borthwick’s coaching team lacks the experience needed to take the national side to the next level.
Carling recently questioned whether England had assembled the “best” coaching set-up, suggesting that a lack of top-tier experience might be limiting the teams potential.
Speaking to BBC Radio 4 on Tuesday, the former centre said: "You look at the calibre of the England coaching team and you have got to question whether that's the best we can put out there.
"Some of them are learning, some of them are very young and maybe lack the experience at Test level. Maybe that's what we're seeing impact on the players."
However, Itoje firmly disagreed with Carling’s statement, praising the work ethic and impact of Borthwick and his staff.
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