3. BIDDING A POTENTIAL FAREWELL TO TWO ENGLAND LEGENDS
Though nothing has been confirmed just yet, there has been plenty of speculation on the test match futures of Danny Care and Manu Tuilagi. Both men could well have run out for the final time in an England shirt tonight, with Care making his 101st appearence, and Tuilagi achieving his 60th cap for the country.
Beginning with Care, the Harlequin has stated how he does not know what the future holds with England after the 2024 Six Nations. Care has previously said how the trip to Scotland’s Murrayfield was his last run out in the Edinburgh cauldron, hinting at how he won’t be amongst the squad for their 2026 trip North of the border. With Tuilagi, the Sale man made his first appearence of the 2024 Six Nations in the closing match of the tournament.
There is plenty of speculation that Tuilagi will be leaving Sale at the end of the season, and a move outside of the Premiership would see the Samoan-born centre rule himself out of any future contention for England. The Sharks man has been most prominently linked to a move to France, to follow the likes of Owen Farrell over to the Top 14 next season.
4. ETHAN ROOTS IMPRESSES AFTER BEING DROPPED BY BORTHWICK
Steve Borthwick named a relatively unchanged side for the trip to France, with the exception of Elliot Daly coming in for the concussed Manny Feyi-Waboso. On the bench we saw the return of Ethan Roots, who was dropped from the fourth round win against Ireland. The Exeter man returned after an injury to Chandler Cunningham-South, as the Harlequin was sidelined for the fixture in Lyon.
Roots ran on for Ollie Chessum, who picked up an injury on the blindside flank. Roots exploded into the fold at 55 minutes, and was relentless in his mission to prove a point to Borthwick and the England coaching staff. The Chiefs man is originally from New Zealand, and could well return to his hometown of Auckland on England’s Summer tour. Roots certainly impressed upon his return, as he hit the highs first seen in his Player of the Match awarded debut out in Rome.
5. MARCUS SMITH SHINES UPON HIS RETURN TO FULLBACK
A seventh minute calf injury to George Furbank laid the foundations for an unexpected scenario, as Marcus Smith made his return to the England back-three. The Harlequin was frequently seen in the fullback spot throughout the Rugby World Cup, where he battled against Freddie Steward to take hold of the 15 jersey. Smith had since returned to the fly half ranks, following the England step-down of Owen Farrell, and subsequent injury to Northampton halfback Fin Smith.
Marcus stole the show from fly half against Ireland, as his match winning drop goal sent Twickenham into a frenzy seven days ago. He hit similar highs in his run out back at fullback, as he contributed an excellent try in which he weaved his way through Damien Penaud and Thomas Ramos’ tackle attempts. Smith also added an assist to his overall performance, as he played in Freeman for what England fans thought at the time, was going to be the match winning try.