"Clearly, It Doesn't Look Good" - 5 Talking Points: Steve Borthwick Addresses Joe Marler's Injury after defeat to All Blacks in Dunedin

There was plenty of fallout from the first Test, with Borthwick joined by his England captain Jamie George in the post match press conference. George looked like a battle-tested veteran as he entered the media centre, with the scars of a gruling first Test etched across the hooker's face. Whilst George grimaced due to his body's ache, his front row partner Joe Marler left the pitch in a far worst state.

Steve Borthwick addressed the injured Harlequin loose-head and an assortment of other issues, with England now tasked with picking up the pieces ahead of Eden Park next Saturday. Here are the five biggest talking points from England's post match press conference, beginning with the status of Joe Marler.

Marler was withdrawn from the Forsyth Barr stadium early in the first half, with his Harlequins protege Fin Baxter tasked with an hour-long Test debut against the All Blacks. Amidst all of the speculation, Borthwick confirmed that Marler had in fact injured his foot. The loose-head was later on crutches in the England changing room, as he presented Baxter with his Test match cap. Marler is set to miss next Saturday's Test in Auckland, and could be out for some time.

STEVE BORTHWICK: "Joe’s injured his foot to some degree. He will need scans and X-rays; a full analysis to understand what is going on with it. A man as tough as Joe leaving the field, is not just for a small injury – it’s not just for a bruise.

"We don’t know the full extent of it but clearly, it doesn’t look good for next week. I haven’t had a full report, but currently I don’t anticipate anything else which will impact on next week."

Following on from Marler's early exit, England fans witnessed the extended Test match debut of Fin Baxter. The young loose-head was amongst England's top performers in the home of the Highlanders, as the young Quin left it all on the line and won some scrum penalties along the way. Speaking on the 22-year-old's trial by fire, Borthwick said:

"He was thrown on at the deep end and he did tremendously well. I think maybe Joe Marler set it up so that Fin came on at 20 minutes and did the longer stint! He did tremendously well. Both Fin and Ollie (Sleightholme) had their caps presented in the changing-room just now and it was a very proud moment for those young men and their families."

3. "An exciting opportunity" - Jamie George Rallies England to End Eden Park Record

The All Blacks have not lost at Eden Park for 30 years. The last time that New Zealand were beaten in their Auckland amphitheater, just four England squad members - Dan Cole, Joe Marler, Jamie George and Ben Spencer, had been born. There is no denying the mystique around the ground, yet Jamie George believes his men will be up to the Test next week.

JAMIE GEORGE: "Yeah, look, what an exciting opportunity we’ve got this week; the last week of the season for us. Going to Eden Park, we know the record that they have there but there’s a lot we can take from the game, a lot of learnings, and make sure that we are a better team going into next week.

"By choices I mean let’s make the right choices this evening, let’s make the right choices recovery-wise, to make sure we put our best foot forward for getting stuff right next week leading into the Test."

STEVE BORTHWICK: "We’ve got to keep getting better. We’ve got to learn from every experience; whether you win, whether you lose, whether you draw. That’s how we improve. The exciting thing is that we have played against a New Zealand squad who had 200 more caps than our squad and average age was two years older than our average age, so the ceiling for this team… I don’t want there to be a ceiling for this team."

Whilst you can not simply accredit England's defeat to the missed kicks of Marcus Smith, the margin of error is so tight in Test match rugby, that it made such a significant difference. Smith left eight points out on the pitch in Dunedin, and was devastated by the outcome of the match given his perfectionist mindset. Steve Borthwick expressed how the Harlequin hung his head after exiting the pitch, but the boys all rallied round him.

STEVE BORTHWICK: "When you walked into the changing-room, you could sense from all the players a feeling of disappointment, because we set out to win. There was a feeling of pride in the effort, but also frustration – Marcus was the same as all the players like that. Marcus has produced some moments of magic out there today, didn’t he? We can talk about mistakes, but everyone makes mistakes and Marcus also produced magic on that pitch today."

"There wasn’t much in it for either team. There were two tries apiece and the margins were very fine. That second half turned into a proper arm-wrestle in the middle of the pitch for both teams. I don’t think either team got too many entries into the opposition 22. It was a real battle, we will review it thoroughly and work out how we can be better next week."

England's 2023/24 campaign began back in June of 2023, as they took on Wales in the Principality Stadium to commence their Rugby World Cup preparations. The players are understandably fatigued after a 13-month long season for club and country, with Borthwick continuing to keep things fresh to get the best out of his players, ahead of the final Test of the season.

STEVE BORTHWICK: "You are always looking at how the players feel, every day – that’s the first question that I ask myself; what do the players need today? They continue to be led superbly by Jamie alongside a group of senior England players. I’m not avoiding the situation; I know Jamie (George) has been going for 13 months, along with many of the players.

"We tailor our programme accordingly, but I don’t know how many times I had to hold them back in training last week. I was constantly trying to hold them back because the intensity they train with and the competitiveness of them is phenomenal."