An England 23 Borthwick could pick after the Lions squad announcement

As 13 England internationals had their names read out by Ieuan Evans at the British and Irish Lions squad announcement on Thursday, Steve Borthwick would have had mixed emotions.

Of course, any national coach would be delighted to see so many of his players selected for the Lions, and many of the selections were hardly unexpected. But being the meticulous coach he is, he would no doubt have immediately turned his attention to the daunting upcoming two-Test tour of Argentina and what he has at his disposal.

To put the challenge that awaits Borthwick into context, he will be missing 12 members of the starting XV that beat Wales in their last outing to face a Pumas side that are above them in the world rankings. The one-off test against the USA that follows may be the opportunity for experimentation, but with the 2027 World Cup pool draw less than a year away, ranking points will be paramount in July.

It is testament to the squad that he has built over the past 18 months that there is still plenty of talent and experience to choose from.

Fixture

Internationals

Argentina

12 - 35

Full-time

England

All Stats and Data

The preferred starting front-row in the Guinness Six Nations of Ellis Genge, Luke Cowan-Dickie and Will Stuart have all been selected by Andy Farrell, but England are still left with Fin Baxter and Bevan Rodd as loosehead options. On the other side of the front-row, 20-year-old Asher Opoku-Fordjour, who was tipped as a Lions bolter, will compete with Joe Heyes for the No.3 shirt, after the Leicester Tiger deputised for Stuart during the Six Nations.

In the middle of the scrum, Jamie George, who will be bitterly disappointed in missing out on the trip to Australia, may return to captain what will be a new-look team. His club-mate Theo Dan will rival him for a starting berth, but Northampton Saints’ Curtis Langdon also deserves to add to his two England caps following his recent exploits for his club. At least one appearance against Argentina would be just reward for the past two seasons he has had.

With Maro Itoje and Ollie Chessum selected for the Lions, and George Martin ruled out through injury, the second-row has taken quite a hit for England, and unlike some other positions, there isn’t necessarily an abundance of options. The seven-cap Alex Coles seems the most logical choice to pack down in the scrum after a monumental performance against Leinster in the Investec Champions Cup semi-final, with a workrate that was off the charts. He will likely be joined by a newly-capped player, with his Saints team-mate Tom Lockett, 22, or Gloucester’s Arthur Clark, 23, both of whom excelled for England A this year, being contenders. One Test each may be a reasonable outcome. Bath’s Ted Hill could provide cover for the second-row and back-row from the bench, though Borthwick has been loath to use him in the past.

Even with Tom Curry, Ben Earl and Henry Pollock on Lions duty, England have enough depth in the back-row that some superb players will still miss out. Tom Willis will surely be maintained at No.8, and should be joined in the back-row by Ben Curry, who is unlucky not to be joining his brother Down Under. Having missed the Six Nations, Sam Underhill could return on the other flank to form a similar back-row set-up that thrived earlier this year.

Chandler Cunningham-South would then be deployed from the bench, covering lock as well, and could be joined by a newbie in a 6-2 split. Harlequins’ Jack Kenningham, 25, may be the next cab off the rank to earn his first cap, but returns for Alex Dombrandt or Tom Pearson may be on the cards. Had Greg Fisilau not injured his shoulder, the 21-year-old Exeter Chief would probably be earning his first cap. Clearly, depth is not an issue in this department for Borthwick.

Jack van Poortvliet’s return to form at the tail end of this season means Alex Mitchell’s absence may not be felt as severely while he is with the Lions. Ben Spencer’s limited game time for England remains a mystery though, and even with Mitchell unavailable, it seems unlikely that Borthwick will turn to him. Harry Randall seems the most likely option to rival van Poortvliet.

Does Borthwick go for youth or experience at fly-half? With Fin Smith and Marcus Smith gunning for the Lions No.10 jersey this summer, England’s head coach either has the 99-cap George Ford, who narrowly missed Farrell’s selection, or a capless player to choose from, with Gloucester’s 23-year-old playmaker Charlie Atkinson the most likely contender. Given the squad upheaval, and his imminent milestone, Ford seems the safe bet.

The midfield is where England could get experimental. This could be the time to try out Freddie Steward’s move to inside centre, which the 36-cap international has already said he is open to in order to revive his Test career. Borthwick is already in the process of fashioning Marcus Smith, a fly-half, into a full-back – which got him onto the Lions tour – so why not a full-back into a centre? Partnering Fraser Dingwall, who has the uncanny ability of making all the players around him look better, would be the perfect partner for a fledgling centre.

The likes of Oscar Beard, Luke Northmore, Max Ojomoh and Seb Atkinson may not be too happy with a midfield move like that, but in a three-match tour, there are opportunities to chop and change centre combinations.

Like the back-row, England’s wing options are still overflowing even when taking into account Tommy Freeman’s and Elliot Daly’s Lions call-ups. Tom Roebuck, Ollie Sleightholme and Cadan Murley were all used in the Six Nations, but a potentially fit-again Immanuel Feyi-Waboso deserves his starting place back (or even a potential Lions call-up?) following shoulder surgery. With Adam Radwan on fire with Leicester, Bath’s Will Muir and Joe Cokanasiga always threatening, and even the Bath-bound Henry Arundell eligible again (although only just recovering from injury), it is a devilish task working out which two will start out wide. The options are there though.

George Furbank would expect to reclaim his No.15 shirt after missing the Six Nations with a broken arm. In a 6-2 split on the bench, the Northampton captain also provides cover at fly-half – allowing Borthwick the luxury of selecting a centre or back-three option among his replacements.

Should Furbank’s arm continue to cause him problems having ruled him out of the Champions Cup semi-final, his English-qualified club deputy deserves a first cap. Similar to England’s former full-back Mike Brown, the 27-year-old has an astonishing ability to always beat his first man. Even if Furbank is fit, Ramm is equally adept on the wing, and will be competing for a spot there too.

Though missing 13 players initially looks calamitous for Borthwick and England ahead of a tough tour, the options are there to continue developing the players that have featured over the past year in white, while starting to blood through some new players. So here’s how an England 23 might look:

England XV
15 James Ramm/ George Furbank
14 Tom Roebuck
13 Fraser Dingwall
12 Freddie Steward
11 Immanuel Feyi-Waboso
10 George Ford (vice-captain)
9 Jack van Poortvliet
1 Fin Baxter
2 Jamie George (captain)
3 Asher Opoku-Fordjour
4 Alex Coles
5 Tom Lockett
6 Ben Curry
7 Sam Underhill
8 Tom Willis

Replacements
16 Curtis Langdon
17 Bevan Rodd
18 Joe Heyes
19 Ted Hill
20 Chandler Cunningham-South
21 Jack Kenningham
22 Harry Randall
23 Oscar Beard