England v Fiji – Autumn Nations Series Match Analysis

Like the silver birches near my house at this time of year, England's autumn performances show a blend of highs and lows. Their appeal stems from transformations and natural progress, ahead of the certain deterioration that results in widespread disarray that you must spend weeks clearing up in a foul mood. And it’s started raining.

England's coach Steve Borthwick aims to transform this scenario and it’s started OK for him. Their initial victory against Australia this November marks an improvement compared to last year, when three miserable losses were punctuated by a bog-standard win over Japan serving as the conclusion in the last week. There was extensive talk following the series downturn that the opening trio of NZ, Australia and Boks meant the fixtures were front loaded to a fault, where a wave of disappointment followed every weekly outcome. For 2025, insights have been gained, as the victory over Australia is now followed by today's game versus Fiji as a chance to consolidate the positive vibes.

England has fielded a significantly altered lineup from the previous week, which given the class sprinkled throughout the Fiji squad could be be seen as hubris from Borthwick. Yet, despite the island nation's undeniable skill, they have historically faced challenges in this matchup. Their lone win in nine tests against today's rivals came during the 2023 World Cup warm-ups.

England are also arguably the best team in the world at despatching teams they should not struggle against; they remain the only side undefeated by Italy in the Six Nations for example, and they seldom fall to lower-tier nations.