Maro Itoje was installed as England captain primarily for two reasons. First, to give England a more abrasive, harder edge. Second, to help England close out matches, to steer them home in the second half, when the clock is ticking down and when limbs are tired, minds are frayed and clear thinking is needed.
On the evidence of his first game since being appointed, he is halfway there. Because Itoje was possessed for the first 40 minutes, powerless for most of the second as England’s recurring problem reared its head again, the drop-off cataclysmic this time. Welcome to the new England era, same as the old one.
