LONG READ Mick Cleary: 'England approach Murrayfield with relish, no matter what awaits them.'

The England naughty step is not the biggest piece of real estate in the Six Nations but Steve Borthwick will be grateful that he can put forward a few candidates to stand there if only to off-set the con trick being put in place by Scotland. What price a tartan victory after their drowning rat performance in Rome? The Calcutta Cup must now have a Twickenham 2026 post code already embossed on it. Not even a David Sole 1990 slow walk or an Andy Nicol 2000 splashdown victory could upset the odds. Surely not?

While England will start as warm favourites, Borthwick will be delighted that there were gremlins in their performance against Wales, spurts of ill-discipline that might have seen Ellis Genge carded for his petulant head-caress on Alex Mann’s cheek while Maro Itoje did end up in that sackcloth sin-bin for his pent-up moment of carelessness; tries that ought to have been run in but weren’t through white-line fever: off-loads flunked, a lull in second-half momentum, all the sort of stuff that a revamped, recharged, death-or-glory Scottish side might find succour from. Margins matter.

But these are quibbles, much as they would have been for Fabien Galthie as he reflected on his side’s opening big-beat salvo against Ireland. There is little doubt that the pundits have been on the money. As predicted, France and England are of a different order to the rest in this year’s championship. There is not a hint of presumption to be had in such a statement now that we’ve seen both teams in action – pace, power, elan, self-belief, all-court prowess, thunder up-front, twinkling behind. England and France have set the bar high. Ireland may have been half-arsed, a pale shadow of the error-free, combative outfit that took them to such heights while Wales – oh Wales, what have they done to you? The horrors continue as the long-lasting uncertainty the other side of the Bridge betray a nation’s heritage.

That there was some grit eventually on show, making England work until the hard, was akin to patting the little kid in the schoolyard after he ended playtime with two skinned knees and a chipped tooth. Little scrapper, eh? Yes, but clueless, headless chicken too. Wales have to offer more than this or rugby is doomed. It is a small enough sport as it is. The first half was an embarrassment with not a hint of jeopardy. Might as well have been played on an X-Box, a meaningless distraction to the real world of edge and uncertainty.

England have lost too many times for even a crumb of comfort to be anywhere in their psyche. They have only one win in a decade at Murrayfield to their name.

But that is not Borthwick’s problem. He has put England on track to deliver some noteworthy things. On track but not there yet. This has been a long time in the building and no fluke even though the victory-switch was only triggered a year ago as the run of 12 successive wins began following opening weekend defeat in Dublin. They might have been a few pipsqueak moments but England came through those just as the All Blacks of a generation ago used to do and the Springboks currently do. They found ways to win and England now have that in the ledger. The Welsh contest was over within minutes. Thereafter it was a question of not ‘if’ but ‘how many’. In that regard, England were not as ruthless as they ought to have been. Certainly the southern hemisphere superpowers would have kept the foot on the throat and worked that scoreboard until it cried out for mercy.

Nor would either of those two countries have too much trepidation about next week’s assignment at Murrayfield. Respect, for sure. Calcutta Cup Upset The Sequel is a long-running box office hit north of the border and the under-siege Gregor Townsend has a decent record against England to call to the witness stand in his defence. England have lost too many times for even a crumb of comfort to be anywhere in their psyche. They have only one win in a decade at Murrayfield to their name.

The signs are positive. There was no grandstanding after victory over Wales, just a sober realisation that there could have, should have, been more polish in their performance given just how wretched Wales were for long, long stretches. There was much to admire. George Ford won Player of the Match for his game-management, unruffled and aware but that plaudit really ought to have gone to lock, Ollie Chessum. You might have thought you’d have to go some to find a better performance from a lock-forward than that of France’s Mickael Guillard on Thursday night but Chessum managed it, stride for stride, angled support line running for angled support line running. The Leicester man also did his spade work, of course.

Who gets the No 13 shirt will have the an IQ asset in the shape of Fraser Dingwall inside. You keep thinking that there are better contenders at inside centre and then a deft pass here or sharp-eyed play there and you realise Dingwall’s value.

And victory on the road is a central part of what England now have to show to the outside world as some sort of evidence on their burgeoning CV. True, they won in Argentina last summer but both sides were under-clubbed. This is a milestone moment for them with expectations high and the scrutiny fierce. That’s just how Borthwick would want it. And that’s what his team should embrace as well.

There were plenty of others putting in a shift, too be it Guy Pepper or the Duracell bunny that is Ben Earl in the back-row. Henry Arundell recorded what will be the easiest hat-trick of his career while Tommy Freeman showed enough as a novice outside centre to merit further experimentation albeit he still looks more dangerous as a wing. Stick or twist? You can make a case for either approach given that Ollie Lawrence is back in the mix. Who gets the No 13 shirt will have the an IQ asset in the shape of Fraser Dingwall inside. You keep thinking that there are better contenders at inside centre and then a deft pass here or sharp-eyed play there and you realise Dingwall’s value.

Above all, Borthwick now has options pretty much everywhere. And the players know that and realise that they can’t rest on any laurels, the perfect state of mind as they head north. England look as if they enjoy being out there, eager to show what they have to offer, to themselves and to their teammates first and foremost to put them in the best position to win, but also to the public who are very much in tune with this England set-up. Their attack is not yet fully honed but it is now multi-layered. The players are challenging each other, probing for excellence, not content with the humdrum. They approach Murrayfield with relish, no matter what awaits them.