The English Team v the Fijian Squad – Autumn Nations Series Match Analysis
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Much like the silver birches in my neighborhood in autumn, the English side during fall presents a varied display. They often appear impressive because of shifts and organic growth, before the inevitable atrophying dumps of loads of mess all over the place that you must spend weeks clearing up in a foul mood. And it’s started raining.
England's coach Steve Borthwick aims to transform this scenario and the beginning has been favorable for him. The opening win over Australia in this year’s November is already better than 2024, a period featuring three dismal defeats interrupted by a routine win against Japan as the full stop in the final week. Much was made amidst the post-series malaise regarding how the initial matches against New Zealand, Australia, and South Africa made the schedule overly challenging, where a wave of disappointment followed every weekly outcome. For 2025, insights have been gained, with the win over the Wallabies followed with today’s outing against Fiji offering an opportunity to reinforce the good feelings.
It’s a much changed England team from last week, which given the class sprinkled throughout the Fiji squad could be be seen as hubris from Borthwick. Yet, despite the island nation's undeniable skill, they often find it tough in encounters with England. Their lone win in nine tests against today's rivals came during the 2023 World Cup warm-ups.
The English side is widely regarded as the most efficient in dispatching opponents they ought to overcome easily; they hold the distinction of being unbeaten against Italy in the Six Nations, and rarely lose to tier two opponents.
