There's only one option left open for England – Andy Goode

Regardless of what is written or said outside the camp, England have to win two Tests this month as a bare minimum and do it with an identity to boot.

Anything less than that and the noise around Steve Borthwick’s position might just be too loud to ignore, even if he did have his contract extended two months ago and appears to have been backed to the hilt by Bill Sweeney.

It seems an unlikely outcome to see him not lead England into another World Cup at this stage but there are so many parallels with his old boss Eddie Jones and the Australian was dismissed in the December prior to the 2023 World Cup so you just never know.

It’s interesting to hear that the England players felt moved to have a meeting about an article in the media, which Jamie George says is the first time that’s happened in his long international career, but there isn’t too much in it that hasn’t been said before.

George says a lot of it is untrue, and some bits I’m sure you can dispute the extent of depending on your perspective, but there is clearly a lot of truth to it and the players shouldn’t need to be galvanised by an article.

Wins over Fiji and Argentina in July don’t mask the fact that England have had a torrid year but there should be optimism ahead of this month as there is a very real chance they could win three out of three. The fact there isn’t probably tells a story in itself.

Japan shouldn’t pose a serious threat and the All Blacks will be in the final game of one of their most attritional seasons ever, missing the likes of Ardie Savea, Ruben Love and Caleb Clarke to name just a few, but the game against the Wallabies this week is massive.

England came unstuck against them in dramatic fashion a couple of years ago at Allianz Stadium but have won 11 of the last 13 meetings over the past decade and should be sizeable favourites.

It’s easier said than done but they should embrace that pressure, not be cowed by it, and they certainly have the players to put on a show with Borthwick picking a team that I think is about as good as it gets.

You could argue that Ben Curry is a tad fortunate to get the nod in the back row, especially given he’s only started one PREM game this season, but I completely get the desire to go with an out-and-out openside when Fraser McReight is wearing the gold number seven jersey.

I’ve said before that Henry Pollock should be getting a run of starts but he isn’t in quite as good a form as he was at the end of last season and I think he’d have been vying for a place with Ben Earl rather than Curry.

Elsewhere, it’d have been good to see Will Joseph get a chance after his excellent early season form for Gloucester but Henry Slade’s experience and kicking game will be invaluable and the rest of the team sort of picks itself.

Even though England have struggled in 2026, the likes of Ollie Chessum, Alex Coles, Joe Heyes and a few others are nailed on starters now, to go with Maro Itoje, Fin Smith, Tommy Freeman, Immanuel Feyi-Waboso and co who were already inked in.

It’s a settled side and Seb Atkinson is looking strong at inside centre, a position that has been a problem for England for a while now, so everything is set for it to be a positive autumn but the coaching issue remains and a weight needs to be lifted on Sunday.

For all the talk of defensive and discipline issues and the PREM not preparing players for the rigours of Test rugby, Lee Blackett is the key to giving this team lift off with all the attacking potential it possesses.

That area of the game has reportedly had the least amount of time and detail invested in it and whilst it is often the last bit to be tacked on, it should have clicked well before now and forming a proper attacking identity has to be the priority.

There should be serious impact from the bench against the Wallabies, there is power and experience up front, Fin Smith is blossoming into one of the best fly halves in the world and Tommy Freemand and Immanuel Feyi-Waboso have more x-factor than most.

The ingredients are there but they are less than the sum of their parts and playing nowhere near to potential right now. If this exterior noise galvanises everyone, that’s great but the feedback from outside and particularly inside the camp should have been heeded before now.

Three wins out of three this month, before the finals weekend, represents success for England and puts all this outside speculation to bed. Two wins is a bare minimum. Anything less than that is unthinkable and the knives will be out even sharper.

For what it’s worth, I think it’ll be a productive month for England and, while issues may well resurface in future, the mood will be more upbeat come December. Australia is as good a game as any to kick things off and a 10-point victory should be forthcoming.