England to unleash Fin and Marcus Smith in playmaker double-act against France - as Steve Borthwick makes bold call after Six Nations loss to Ireland
England to unleash Fin and Marcus Smith in playmaker double-act against France - as Steve Borthwick makes bold call after Six Nations loss to Ireland
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England are set to unleash a new playmaker double-act against France at Twickenham on Saturday, by naming their two Smiths together in a revamped back division. Having lined up in his preferred fly-half role for the Six Nations opener against Ireland last weekend, Mail Sport understands that Marcus Smith is being relocated to full-back for Le Crunch. The vacancy at No 10 is due to be filled by Northampton rookie Fin Smith, who has already won seven caps at the age of 22 – but has not yet started a Test for his country.
This will be a momentous occasion to be handed the coveted starting place for the first time; with the responsibility of running the England attack. It also represents a bold gamble by head coach Steve Borthwick, at a time when he is desperately striving to revive the struggling national team. The heat is on, going into round two of this year’s championship. England conceded 22 unanswered points in Dublin on the way to losing 27-22 against the title-holding Irish. It was a seventh defeat in their last nine Tests, leaving the team and the entire regime under mounting pressure.
Borthwick has spoken about the need for selection stability, to generate precious cohesion. He has also lamented his side’s relative lack of caps compared to some of their leading rivals. But instead of turning to George Ford – a veteran who is two appearances away from reaching his Test century – he is prepared to roll the dice and trust the Smiths to cause an upset over the formidable French, who started their own campaign with a thunderous 43-0 home win over Wales.
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