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England player ratings vs Wales | 2026 Guinness Men’s Six Nations
By Josh Raisey at Allianz Stadium, Twickenham
England player ratings: England got their Guinness Six Nations campaign off to a winning start against Wales on Saturday, cruising to a 48-7 victory at Twickenham’s Allianz Stadium.
The hosts entered the match as heavy favourites, and there was very little on show to suggest otherwise. Clinical and merciless from Steve Borthwick’s side, particularly in the first half. Like France on Thursday against Ireland, they put in a display where there were very few underachievers.
On to Scotland next week, and England will arrive with a lot of confidence. Here’s how the players rated:
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15. Freddie Steward – 7
Fumbled the first two high balls with Wales targeting him with the 6’4″ Ellis Mee chasing, but was rarely tested again. Threw his weight in at rucks when England were attacking in Wales’ 22 – as did all the back-three – which helped England play at such a tempo. Delivered a crisp, flat pass for Ben Earl to run onto a score – yet another sign of the development of his game. A nice intervention, but didn’t have as much success as the rest of the backline.
14. Tom Roebuck – 8
Playing his first match since breaking his toe against the All Blacks in November, and a late call-up after Immanuel Feyi-Waboso’s hamstring injury. But this match was tailor-made for Roebuck’s skillset. Then again, much of the action seemed to take place on the other wing. Came off his wing more frequently as the match progressed and came very close to gliding through the Welsh defence for a try after the break. He did, however, score a couple of phases later.
13. Tommy Freeman – 8.5
Looks increasingly comfortable in that No.13 jersey, and was, of course, aided by playing alongside his Northampton team-mate in the midfield. A concern in the autumn was Freeman’s distribution in the midfield, and he did fluff a pass to Roebuck at one point in a promising position – a minor blip, to be fair. But his carrying in the middle of the field really did give England go-forward, targeting the No.10 channel. After being on the cusp of scoring all match, he eventually got his try in the corner at the death.
12. Fraser Dingwall – 8
This game was the ideal example of what a ‘glue player’ like Dingwall can bring. It may seem like a disservice, but he shows what a skill it is. Brought Freeman into the game frequently in threatening positions and shared the playmaking with George Ford. Snaffled a loose ball to put Henry Arundell in for his first-half hat-trick and put Roebuck in for the first try of the second half. Plenty of debate about who should wear the England No.12 shirt – surely it’s Dingwall’s for the Calcutta Cup.
11. Henry Arundell – 8.5
With Feyi-Waboso out, this was a chance to stake a claim to start on the wing this year should the Exeter Chiefs star be ruled out long-term. Did he do that? Absolutely. Opened the scoring with a try in the corner, added his second 10 minutes later, gathering a Ford cross-field kick, and had his hat-trick before half-time when he was there to support Dingwall. Bizarrely, he barely touched the ball otherwise in the first half, and not much in the second either. 11 tries in 12 Tests now – a try-scoring sensation. Up against a taller man in Mee, he won his contestables when they were there, slapping the ball back to a team-mate.
10. George Ford – 9
Perfect cut-out pass under pressure to put Arundell in for the opening try of the match, and was finding the wing again with a perfectly-weighted cross-field kick soon after (albeit with a lot of space and very little pressure). Conducted proceedings with his right boot to ensure very little of the match was played in England’s half – was creative with his kicking too, taking advantage of the greasy conditions with low, drilled kicks. The match was played the way he wanted, which is what any fly-half wants.
9. Alex Mitchell – 7.5
Foraged for the ball at the bottom of the ruck to maintain wave after wave of carries and won the kicking game against Tomos Williams. Had a nice variety to his passing game too, changing the direction of attack craftily. Brushed aside by Rees-Zammit at one point, but often found himself defending the wide channels and did that well.
1. Ellis Genge – 6
Pinged and had a penalty reversed for a fracas with Alex Mann in the opening quarter – inconsequential, but needless. Pinged again later in the first half for being offside, although that was largely down to Williams’ ingenuity. Topped England’s tackle count with seven and made six carries before being roped off at the break. Industrious, but the lapses in discipline affected his performance.
2. Jamie George – 7
Led the side with Maro Itoje on the bench, and led from the front, and was often in Welsh faces in and around the ruck. Did his fundamentals immaculately, with the lineout functioning perfectly during his 50 minutes on the field.
3. Joe Heyes – 7.5
England’s chief tighthead this Six Nations, and he performed like that. Up against his Leicester Tigers club-mate Nicky Smith, Heyes got the better of the Welshman at the scrum. An asset as ever in defence, producing a monstrous counter-rucking effort to deliver a turnover in Wales’ half one stage, which gave England the ascendancy.
4. Alex Coles – 7
Put Dewi Lake under consistent pressure at the lineout in yet another area of the match which England dominated. Looked to be growing into the match, and with a work-rate like the Saint has, the second-half is often where Coles proves his worth, but only managed 10 minutes after the break before being replaced. He managed five tackles in that 10-minute period though.
5. Ollie Chessum – 8.5
Pierced the Welsh defence with a wonderful line and looked as though he was about to gallop down-field only to be scragged. Alongside Coles, he plagued the Welsh lineout, and added such ferocity and ballast in the tight but showed he can move as well – tracking across to tackle Josh Macleod on the touchline in his own 22. Really threatened with his carrying, with offloads to go with it.
6. Guy Pepper – 9
Any team that builds a gameplan around aerial supremacy needs a play like Pepper to feed off the chaos that comes with balls won in the air. Often the man that sweeps up the ball, which typifies his ability to effectively be everywhere. Played the full 80 and deserved to be even with the class on England’s bench, putting in 14 tackles – the joint-most for England.
7. Sam Underhill – 7.5
Copy and paste from every other England performance from Sam Underhill. A true menace whenever the opposition have the ball, starting with a charge-down on Louis Rees-Zammit in the opening minutes, which led to England’s first points of the match. A lot of tackles and, crucially, dominant tackles (a match-leading three when he left the field), as Wales really failed to dent England’s defensive wall. He may not be an 80-minute man under Borthwick, but he empties the tank in the time he has on the field.
8. Ben Earl – 8.5
Earl’s try – England’s third – was made to look easy, but took some power to ride through Mee’s attempt to stop him. Looked more like a traditional No.8 with some of his carries off Mitchell, but he still added his own flair with footwork near contact and deft pull-backs, often to Ford. Produced a match-leading 17 tackles and tied Pepper with 14 tackles. Even finished the match in the centres to show what a versatile player he is.
Replacements
16. Luke Cowan-Dickie – 7
Maintained England’s 100 per cent record at the lineout, but was penalised for a neck roll, which saw a try of England’s chalked off.
17. Bevan Rodd – 7.5
This may not have been the platform to truly show that he is an able Fin Baxter replacement this Six Nations, that may come in tougher encounters, but he did all he could do in the half that he was given. Part of a strong scrummaging effort straight away and patrolled the fringes around the ruck in defence throughout the half, and ran some hard lines with a great reward.
18. Trevor Davison – 7
Solid in the scrum, which was Davison’s main priority. Nothing noteworthy elsewhere.
19. Maro Itoje – 6
Yellow carded within seconds of coming onto the field for being offside. Hassled the Welsh breakdown when he was on, with one clean turnover in his half.
20. Tom Curry – 6
Came on with England under some rare pressure and added immediate pep to the defence, although England did concede a try soon after. A yellow card in the final 10 for a tackle off the ball affected his rating.
21. Henry Pollock – 7
Pollock must have been licking his lips watching the action unfold from the touchline. Came on and had the kind of impact that he is becoming synonymous with as part of the ‘Pom Squad’ – looked to have scored in the corner, only to have a foot out.
22. Ben Spencer – 7
Given 13 minutes at the end to kept things going nicely at the same tempo.
23. Marcus Smith – 7
Provided the attacking intent to really drive the victory home for England in the final 15 minutes when the game was in danger of becoming a little flat. Deployed as a full-back, which only added more potency to England’s attack.
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