England. Discuss. They start the new year with bronze medals round their necks. No one else from the Six Nations managed to take anything tangible from the Rugby World Cup. As an achievement, it does not bear too much scrutiny, given the controversial draw from which they benefited, but those games still needed winning. And England’s only defeat was by a single point to the eventual champions in a game no one could have complained had they won.
In his first media session of the year, Steve Borthwick proclaimed their achievement and the foundation for the future it represented. The head coach also heralded, rightly, the performances of English clubs in the first two rounds of Europe before Christmas. The next couple of weeks will supply further food for thought on that front.
