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Newcastle praise ex-Lions star as triple threat selection gear up for fellow strugglers
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England's top 5 players in 2025
By Josh Raisey
There’s nothing quite like a British and Irish Lions tour to test the depth of the constituent countries, and 2025 was no different for England.
With a large portion of Steve Borthwick’s preferred squad wearing a red jersey this summer, he was forced to mix things up with a tour of Argentina, and it had quite a seismic impact on the squad moving forward.
Ironically, going on the Lions tour actually negatively affected a handful of players’ England chances, as, despite theoretically being the best players in England, they have struggled to reclaim their jersey.
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But with 11 wins in a row, it is hard to argue with Borthwick’s judgment. The variety of players used this year due to the Lions tour does mean many have put their hand up to be England’s best performer this year.
On top of that, only losing one match all year means the margins are fairly thin between England’s best players, who all performed at a high level in 2025. But some experienced a different journey from others – a sharp career trajectory, a turnaround in form, or overcoming obstacles – which all contribute when assessing England’s best players in 2025. So here are the top five:
Honourable mentions
Maro Itoje always deserves to be on this list because, quite simply, the England captain is always good. Even though he has upped his game this year, there are others who experienced a greater improvement this year, and, moreover, shone while Itoje was captaining the Lions.
One of those who was with Itoje in Australia was Tommy Freeman, and after scoring in every match in this year’s Six Nations, he looked to be a shoo-in. However, he was obviously absent for the tour of Argentina, and a hamstring injury limited his Quilter Nations Series campaign to two matches, missing the crunch clashes with the All Blacks and Argentina.
5. Ollie Lawrence
2025 was a year punctuated by injury for Lawrence. First, it was the devastating Achilles tendon rupture towards the end of the Six Nations to end any hopes of making the Lions, and then, upon his return to Test rugby, he suffered a hamstring injury in the final minutes of the victory over the All Blacks in November – a try-scoring display by the Bath man.
But based on the performances he did put in for England, he deserves to be on this list. What’s more, Borthwick accepted this year that Lawrence is best suited at outside centre, and has ceased to try and fashion him into an inside centre. With his Bath team-mate Max Ojomoh a favourite to wear the No.12 jersey in the Six Nations, 2026 could be even more fruitful for the 26-year-old.
Like Freeman, Lawrence has not been ever-present this year for England, but the manner in which he has returned to form after a serious injury is commendable.
4. Jamie George
George may have lost the England captaincy in 2025; he may not have consistently started with Luke Cowan-Dickie back fit, and, at the age of 35, there have been persistent questions as to whether he will make the World Cup in two years, but none of those factors have affected his performances on the pitch.
Regardless of whether he was starting or finishing, captaining or not, the veteran, who became a centurion during the Six Nations, was one of England’s most consistent performers this year.
Frequently at the top of the tackle charts when he starts and, save for the contest with the All Blacks, England’s most dependable thrower, George put in some of his best performances in a white shirt this year – particularly his display in the first Test against Argentina in July, racking up 22 tackles, including five dominant tackles – before leaving the England camp to join the Lions.
3. Joe Heyes
This was a year of growth for Leicester Tigers’ Heyes, which has earned him a place on this list. The year started with the 26-year-old deputising for Will Stuart in all five matches in the Six Nations – solid, but nothing necessarily noteworthy. But while the Lion was away, Heyes played, and was voted the player of England’s summer tour of Argentina and the USA, before starting three of their four Quilter Nations Series matches.
Incorrigible in the scrum, and with a work rate no other tighthead in the England set-up can match, Heyes well and truly moved out of Stuart’s shadow this year and became a bona fide rival for the No.3 jersey. With Stuart likely to miss the Six Nations with an Achilles injury, there will be even more responsibility on Heyes.
2. George Ford
Few would have imagined Ford would have been on this list at all at the end of the Six Nations, after a campaign where Fin Smith looked to have firmly taken grasp of the England No.10 shirt and the Sale Sharks man only managed 25 minutes from the bench in the final match of the Championship.
However, like many things in life, it’s not how you start, it’s how you finish, and Ford is England’s form No.10 currently and favourite to steer the ship at the Six Nations. If the first half of the year went to Smith, the second was easily Ford’s; if the year is viewed like a battle, it’s one the 32-year-old won.
The tour of Argentina was a turning point for Ford, where he became a centurion and captained the side to a 2-0 series win over the Pumas. With both Marcus and Fin Smith with the Lions, as well as captain Maro Itoje, the weight of responsibility rested firmly on Ford’s shoulders, and he delivered. He then carried that form in the Quilter Nations Series, earning the player of the match accolade against the All Blacks.
England’s current game plan seems perfectly suited to Ford, with his right boot pulling the strings, and it seems highly unlikely that Borthwick will move away from that.
1. Ben Earl
England players experienced ebbs and flows in form and selection in 2025, but from start to finish, Earl was elite.
It doesn’t matter where he starts in the back-row, it doesn’t matter if England are in possession or not, the 27-year-old produces game-changing moments time and time again.
Sharp over the ball, always busy in defence, but it is Earl’s carrying that makes him so destructive, both with the volume of his carries and the devastating impact.
In a year where England had to effectively wave goodbye to their preferred No.8 leading up to the World Cup in the Bordeaux-bound Tom Willis, Earl allowed England fans to move on quickly.
Rugby’s best of the best, ranked by experts. Check out our list of the Top 100 Men's Rugby Players 2025 and let us know what you think!
