Europe is testing ground as Borthwick looks for Six Nations winning blend
Share:
With Alex Mitchell back at scrum-half, England could turn opener in Dublin into start of successful campaign. Maybe Elon Musk is the man to revive English rugby union. He already believes he has the solutions to most of the universe’s biggest problems so reforming a mere sports team should be a piece of futuristic cake. Throw £40bn at it, take over the comms department and stick the Rugby Football Union’s finest on a rocket ship to Mars? It’s an easy game, megalomania.
![[Robert Kitson]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2017/10/09/Robert-Kitson,-L.png?width=75&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
Back in the real world, of course, nothing is ever quite that straightforward. Even AI cannot identify why England keep struggling to maximise their resources because there is no one simple explanation. As Steve Borthwick prepares to unveil his Six Nations squad on Tuesday, it is again less about the individuals per se than finding the right blend to enable the collective to flourish.
Mark McCall, Saracens’ seasoned director of rugby, was instructive on that subject this week in the context of his own team’s looming Champions Cup pool visit to Thomond Park. Reflecting on his personal lack of joy in Limerick as a player or a coach he offered the following theory as to why. “What I’ve always admired about Munster – and every team wants to do this – is that they’re a team who can be better than the sum of their parts. They’re absolute masters of it.”.
![[England head coach Steve Borthwick]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/bce4c955b9743801114f325ebe72162b40e8a2e7/0_0_5948_3923/master/5948.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
When did anyone last say that about England? Probably not on a consistent basis since 2003 when they also had a generational bunch of players. Unselfish characters such as Richard Hill, Trevor Woodman and Steve Thompson supplied the grit and craft that made life easier for Martin Johnson, Jonny Wilkinson and Jason Robinson and, together, the whole squad ascended to rugby heaven.
