Six Nations: England took a 'step forward' in Ireland defeat, says Steve Borthwick as head coach focusses on positives
Published 01/02/2025 at 20:46 GMT
England began their Six Nations campaign with a 27-22 loss on the road in Dublin against Ireland. Steve Borthwick's side went into the second half with a five-point lead but conceded 22 unanswered points as their discipline and game management waned. Borthwick, however, praised his side for their efforts in both attack and defence in the first half.
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Steve Borthwick sought to focus on the positives following England's 27-22 loss to Ireland on the opening weekend of the Six Nations, praising both his side's attack and defence before they succumbed to a rampant hosts' second-half salvo.
It was a similar story for England as they failed to command the game in the latter stages once again, and Ireland's experience shone through as they cantered to a bonus-point victory.
"Our attack took another step forward today against one of the best defences in the world and against a team that's renowned for their attack," Borthwick said.
"Whilst disappointed to concede the tries I think everybody could see how our defence took a step forward in so many areas.
"And the commitment level of the players in defence was exceptional. That doesn't take away the fact we're disappointed not to get a win."
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England entered the break 10-5 up, having contained Ireland's attack and even navigated a sin-bin period while Marcus Smith was off the pitch.
But the second half was a different story as Simon Easterby's side scored three tries, while it took England until the 75th minute to record any points in the half.
"We talked before the game and the experience Ireland had and that really shone through, particularly in that third quarter," Borthwick continued.
"If you look in that third quarter, there's a couple kick exchanges that Ireland won. They got field position, they got possession in our half, and a couple of penalties that went against us which meant we weren't able to put any pressure on them. Ultimately that was the critical period.
"I'm immensely proud of the players whilst disappointed we didn't get the result. The players in the changing room will be very disappointed not to have come here and not get a win."
England now travel back to Twickenham to face France, the tournament favourites who delivered an imposing 43-0 win over Wales on Friday.
Borthwick's side have now lost seven of their last nine Tests and Borthwick has plenty to address if he plans to stop France from being victorious when they cross the Channel next Saturday.
"There are many things we need to build upon from today," the England coach added.
"The point of difference of this team is going to be the way they move the ball, the passing game, the speed on the edges, and that's going to be something we continue to build upon.
"France pose some different challenges, they have a different kicking strategy and clearly are very dangerous in unstructured situations.
"We'll debrief this game properly, recover, and then we'll start focusing on France."
'every point matters' - ITOJE
England clinched a losing bonus point with two tries in the closing five minutes.
It was Maro Itoje's first game as captain and he added that "every point matters" in a tournament that can be so tight and close when the final fixtures roll around.
"It was a tremendous honour [being captain]. I grew up watching England and wanting to play for England but it's not really about me, it's about the team. There's stuff for us to build on and hopefully next week we'll be better," he said.
"This is a tight competition and every point matters so I'm proud of our team not giving in and playing until the end."
Itoje added that losing the territory battle in the second half was key in Ireland winning the clash.
"I thought the first half was fantastic and we did everything we wanted to do," he said. "The second half we lost the territory a little bit and we struggled to exit and get out.
"We just need to control the territory better and be more consistent."
England also saw their penalty count climb and indiscipline got the better of them as the match progressed.
He continued: "It's hard to dissect exactly what the reason [for the loss] is at this point, so soon after after the game. But it was a territory thing really. We weren't able to exit our half as efficiently as we would have liked."
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