England v Fiji – Fall International Rugby Match Analysis
Game Coverage
Match Background
Like the silver birches near my house at this time of year, the English side during fall presents a varied display. They often appear impressive because of shifts and organic growth, ahead of the certain deterioration that results in widespread disarray which requires weeks of cleanup amid frustration. Plus, the rain has begun to fall.
Steve Borthwick is determined to alter this narrative and it’s started OK for him. The first triumph over the Wallabies in the current autumn series marks an improvement compared to last year, which included three poor losses and only a basic victory over Japan as the full stop in the final week. Much was made amidst the post-series malaise that the opening trio of NZ, Australia and Boks meant the fixtures were front loaded to a fault, and a trend of unhappiness trailed each match result. For 2025, insights have been gained, with the win over the Wallabies followed with today’s outing against Fiji offering an opportunity to reinforce the good feelings.
It’s a much changed England team from last week, which given the class sprinkled throughout the Fiji squad could be be seen as hubris from Borthwick. However, even though the Fijians are far from pushovers, they often find it tough in encounters with England. A win in the 2023 World Cup warm up games their solitary victory in nine tests vs today’s opposition.
England are also arguably the best team in the world at despatching teams they should not struggle against; they remain the only side undefeated by Italy in the Six Nations for example, and rarely lose to tier two opponents.
