Steve Borthwick reveals how Manu Tuilagi reacted to England axe
New England boss Steve Borthwick has explained how Manu Tuilagi reacted when he told the Sale midfielder that he was not picked to play Scotland in this Saturday’s Guinness Six Nations opener. Tuilagi had been a selection favourite under Eddie Jones, Borthwick’s predecessor as head coach, and he started three of the four recent Autumn Nations Series matches, coming off the bench in the other game.
However, having named Tuilagi in the reduced England squad of 29 that was announced on Tuesday evening to continue preparing for the Calcutta Cup fixture, it emerged on Thursday that the centre had been omitted from the match day 23.
Borthwick has instead chosen the Stade Francais-bound Joe Marchant to start at outside centre alongside skipper Owen Farrell, with Ollie Lawrence providing backup from the bench. For both Marchant and Lawrence, their inclusion is a marked difference from their fortunes under Jones. Marchant was excluded from the entire November series while Lawrence hasn’t been capped since 2021.
Asked how Tuilagi reacted to the news that he wouldn’t be playing for England in this weekend’s fixture, Borthwick said: “Manu was the incredible professional that he is. We spoke, I told him what I had decided selection-wise and we shook hands and then he went and trained really hard. That reaction is testimony to him and his character.
“And not just him, there were several players in that way and ultimately what we want to build here is a team that is not something about selection, it’s a team that is building and going forward to try and win for England which means you have got to train hard every day.
“We want to build a team that is not just about getting picked, it’s about going and playing well and that is what we want as a team. We want this team playing well and players are fighting for selection, players are working on the training field. They know I am watching and taking notice of it and when I have those conversations, I give the players clear feedback.”
Borthwick, who confirmed that Tuilagi was definitely fit and available for selection, explained why he had opted to start Marchant on this occasion and include Lawrence on the bench at the expense of Tuilagi. “I look at the combinations for the game, this specific game, and I look at what Joe offers in terms of the work on the edge, his ability to cover ground defensively, attack. And OIlie Lawrence has played tremendously well this season.
“We will always be excited about seeing Ollie Lawrence out there again in an England shirt. Again, he is a player who has not been in the international environment for a year or two but you see when players play well. Everyone would say whether he is centre or wing, Joe Marchant has played well week in, week out at Harlequins for a considerable period of time now and you could say the same for Ollie Lawrence.
“Again I come back to this, these players are working hard to deserve their opportunity and they are desperate for that opportunity against Scotland. The players can’t wait to get on the pitch and personally I can wait to see them get on the pitch.”
Borthwick added that Tuilagi’s exclusion isn’t intended to be a long-term decision. “I picked a team for this week and there is competition and the nature is there should always be good players that aren’t in the 23 because that is what we want with England. We want depth in every position, people competing for the shirt, and we want to see players fighting for the shirt. You make the selection for this week for a specific opponent and then next week is a new week.”
Borthwick’s first team selection contained a total of eight changes to the starting England XV from the side that Jones had picked for his final match in charge, the November loss to South Africa. Max Malins, Marchant, the debut-making Ollie Hassell-Collins, Ellie Genge, Ollie Chessum, Lewis Ludlam, Ben Curry and Alex Dombrandt were all named as starters on this occasion.
Comments on RugbyPass
No Nick, they did not, in fact, justify any ‘probables’ label. At no time did they seriously compete for the championship. Ireland led from start to finish and in the end, as a result of glaring referee errors, were never under serious pressure to lose their crown.
28 Go to commentsMoney for him, and his family, has been the sole motivator since he signed for Queensland aged 17. Why else sign for Melbourne. Tupou is poorly advised. If he’d stayed and developed in NZ he would have had a long Test career. If Leinster offer him a few more coins than he’s currently earning, he’s goneburger.
4 Go to commentsFinn. No one would say Ford had played well up until the last game. One standout performance in 5 is hardly in form . It should be a given that a 10 will control play . Not in Fords case be praised for suddenly doing so. Where was he against Scotland ,Italy. The pundits were saying how far away from play he was standing and one even said that the Ireland game was his last chance saloon to perform . Not exactly top form catching anyones eye. If he can play like this game after game then great. Keep him in . But after 90 odd caps we all know he just doesnt keep it going . By all means keep him there but the issue is that Borthwick will persist even when he plays poorly. Which is more often than not. Thats why i am concerned that Smith ,despite fab form , cannot get a game at his preferred spot. Can you imagine Ford at full back .
5 Go to commentsI do not really get why put Ollivon at 6 when he’s a 7, while Cros was the best Frenchman of the tournament, playing at…6. His only game replacing Aldritt at 8 doesn’t change much in terms of his impact. Lamaro was also outstanding in that brilliant Italian side, probably better than Reffell. So putting 2 Welsh players from the wooden spoon holders, and none of the 4th nation (Scotland) is also strange. Is it about showing that in this harsh transition Wales is, there were some standouts…?
6 Go to commentsThe events at this year’s six nations should undermine many of the arguments made against promotion and relegation between the six nations and the REC. If Italy had been allowed to yo-yo between divisions it conceivably could have really hurt their development, but if Italy, Wales, and Scotland are all at risk of relegation, with none of them being relegated more often than once every 3 or 4 years, you’d have to back all of them to muddle on through it, especially when you factor in the likelihood they’ll still be guaranteed world league matches against tier 1 opponents. Another way of looking at italys resurgence would be to say that the development model of adding an extra team to the six nations has worked, and now must be done again. Georgia could join to make it a 7 team round robin, and if and when Georgia demonstrate an ability to consistently win games, Portugal can also be added to make it an 8 team 2 conference competition. Frankly at this point I think it falls to world rugby to demand that the 6N act in the interests of the game. If the 6N won’t commit to expansion then the 6N teams should be handicapped in world cup draws (i.e. world cup seedings would not be based on their ranking points, but on their ranking points minus a 5 point penalty).
5 Go to commentsSteve Borthwick deserves credit for releasing the shackles on his England side and letting them play in a manner that somewhat resembles the top sides in the Gallagher Premiership. Will they revert to type in New Zealand in July.?
28 Go to commentsJames Lowe wouldn't get in any other 6N team. He's a great example of Farrell’s brilliance, and the Irish system. He is slow. His footwork is poor. But he fits perfectly in that Irish system, and has a superb impact. But put him in another team, and he'll look bang average.
6 Go to commentsCrusaders reached their heights through recruitment of North Island players, often leaving those NI teams bereft of key players. Example: Scott Barrett and Sam Whitelock robbed the Canes of their lineout and AB locks. For years the Canes have struggled at lock. This rabid recruitment was iniated by rule changes by a Crusader dominated NZR Head Office. Now this aggressive recruitment has back-fired, going after young inside back Hamilton Boys stars. They now have 4 Chiefs region 10s and not one with the requisite experience at Super level. Problems of their own making!
2 Go to commentsOver rated for a long time…exposed at scrum time too.
4 Go to comments“Firing me” should have been Gatland’s answer.
2 Go to commentsFinn Russell logic: “World” = 4 countries. Ireland may be at or near the top. FR’s bigger concern should be he and his fellow Scots (incl. the Bloemfontein ones) sliding back down to below top 10
42 Go to commentsMind games have begun. Ireland learned their lesson after saying they could beat England with 13 players or whatever. Still, if they win at Loftus, that would be impressive - final frontier etc.
58 Go to comments$950k for a Prop that isn’t fit enough to play 10 mins of rugby? Surely there is someone better to replace Big Mike with
4 Go to commentsFour Kiwis in that backline. A solid statement on the lack of invention, risk-taking and joy in the NH game; game of attrition and head- banging tedium. Longterm medical problems aplenty in the future!
6 Go to commentsGood article, I learnt quite a lot. A big sliding door moment was in the mid 00s when they rejected Steve Anderson's long term transformation and he wrote Ireland's strategy instead.
2 Go to commentsHi Dr Nick! I'm worried that I've started to enjoy watching England and have actually wanted them to win their last two games. What would you prescribe? On a more serious note, I've noticed that the standard of play in March is often better than early February. Do you think this is because of the weather or because the players have been together for longer?
28 Go to commentsMy question in all this brett is who is going to wear the consequences of these actions? Surely just getting the sack isn’t sufficient? A teenager working the till at woolies would probably get taken to court if they took $20 out of the till. You mean to tell me that someone can spend $2.6 million and get away with it? Where was it spent? What companies/people were the beneficiaries etc? How is it just being talked about as an ‘oopsie’ and we all just move on and not a matter of the court for gross negligence, fraud, take your pick…
21 Go to commentslove Manu too but England have relied on him coming back from injury for far too long and not sorted the position with someone else long term . It will be a blessing he has gone . Huge shame he was so injury prone . God speed Manu .
3 Go to commentsI agree with Ben Smith about Brett Cameron. The No. 6 position has to be a monster and a genuine lineout option, like Ollivon, Lawes (now Chessum), Du Toit, etc. The only player who fits that bill right now is Scott Barrett. A fit and fizzing Tuipolotu together with one of the young towers, Sam Darry or Josh Lord, would give Razor the freedom to play Barret at 6.
16 Go to commentsOutstanding article, Graham. Agree with all of it. And enjoy the style of writing too (particularly Grand Slap!).
3 Go to comments