'New-look' England risk familiar Six Nations failings

LONDON - For all the talk of a post-World Cup reset, England face the prospect of yet more Six Nations stagnation after a stark wake-up call against Scotland.

If Steve Borthwick's men lose against champions Ireland next month and fall to France, they would end up with two wins and three defeats in the tournament for the fourth year in a row.

England finished third at last year's World Cup, raising hopes they were at last on the right track.

They followed that up with narrow victories over Italy and Wales in their opening two matches of the Six Nations, arguably the easiest of their fixtures.

But Saturday's 30-21 defeat at Murrayfield suggests England's run to the closing stages of the global showpiece may have been as much to do with a lopsided draw as their own qualities.

Since Borthwick succeeded Eddie Jones as England coach in December 2022, the team have yet to beat a side above them in the world rankings.

And they have not scored more than two tries in a game since defeating minnows Chile in September.

Saturday's reverse in Edinburgh meant England had lost four successive Championship matches against Scotland -- a country with just two professional clubs -- for the first time since 1896.

In pleading for patience, Borthwick is repeating a refrain that became all too familiar to England fans during the latter stages of Jones's reign.

Borthwick's men surged into an early 10-0 lead at Murrayfield thanks to a well-worked try by George Furbank.

But a series of mistakes followed in a match in which they made a similar number of handling errors.

"We have to look at what changed after (the first 20 minutes)," Borthwick said.

England face a tough set of fixtures in 2024, with New Zealand, Australia and world champions South Africa among their opponents, meaning their situation could get worse before it gets better.

In the short term, the conundrum for Borthwick is whether to stick or twist.

He could stand by his loyal old stagers or decide there is little to lose by promoting players such as Immanuel Feyi-Waboso, Fin Smith, George Martin and Chandler Cunningham‑South into his starting XV.