Steve Borthwick has said he is taking a selection gamble with his surprise decision to pair Tom and Ben Curry in the same back row to face Ireland as England seek to kickstart a Six Nations campaign that promises to make or break his tenure as head coach.
The Currys will make history as the first twin brothers to represent England after Borthwick selected the 26-year-olds for the first time. He explained the decision on the basis of their “athleticism” and “work-rate”, having bemoaned how England players were not fit enough at the start of their disappointing autumn campaign in November.
In the narrow defeat by New Zealand in the autumn, Ben replaced Tom after 59 minutes, but on Saturday he will win his seventh cap at openside flanker with Tom starting at blindside. With Ben Earl lining up at number eight, Borthwick has opted against a specialist lineout jumper in the backrow, instead having Ollie Chessum make do with a place on the bench as part of a 6-2 split. As a result, Borthwick has predicted that the Ireland forwards coach, Paul O’Connell, will be licking his lips.
England head to Dublin on a run of six defeats in their past eight matches and Borthwick, who has also handed a debut to Cadan Murley on the left wing, said: “Clearly there’s always a blend and always a trade-off of what you decide to do and why you decide to do it. It is my job to weigh up all those considerations and I am sure Paul O’Connell and the Irish lineout will look at this and try to attack us in that area. We will have to be very good.
“Ben has gone and stepped his game up to the next level. The backrow [I have selected] can run. All three players have got incredible engines, incredible mobility, they are fantastic players defensively, their tackling and their jackal, they carry the ball well and if you look at that mix of intensity and work rate playing against an Ireland team, whatever combination they pick in their backrow, they have got world class players.”
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Meanwhile, Borthwick said the off-field crisis engulfing the Rugby Football Union (RFU) is not a distraction for his squad on the eve of the championship. The under fire chief executive, Bill Sweeney, will face a confidence vote in March after a grassroots rebellion was launched when it emerged he was paid £1.1 million, including a £358,000 long-term incentive plan bonus, while five other executive directors shared close to £1 million amid 42 redundancies and the RFU’s record loss to reserves of £42 million.
At the time, it emerged that England players were far from impressed having themselves taken a pay cut during the Covid pandemic and last week Sweeney acknowledged he felt the need to speak to Borthwick and senior members of the squad about the furore.
“It’s not something that we’ve discussed in camp,” said Borthwick. “I know Bill has regular contact with senior players and has a very good relationship with the senior players. We’re on the eve of the Six Nations; we are playing against one of the world’s best teams in Dublin, and in this incredible tournament. That’s what is on the players’ minds. Nothing about any other matter than that.”
Asked if his side can lift the mood around English rugby with a positive championship, beginning in Dublin, Borthwick said: “The team is playing in a manner that gets supporters on their feet and cheering for this team. We want to win every single game and we want our fans to enjoy being on the journey with us.
“You talk about the Six Nations, it is 10 million people watching it on TV, you’ll have people sitting on their sofas at home with their England shirts on, hopefully jumping up and down. Hopefully they’re going in to work on a Monday morning feeling six inches taller because of the way their team played. That’s what we want to bring.”
ENGLAND (v Ireland): Freddie Steward (Leicester); Tommy Freeman (Northampton), Ollie Lawrence (Bath), Henry Slade (Exeter), Cadan Murley (Harlequins)*; Marcus Smith (Harlequins), Alex Mitchell (Northampton); Ellis Genge (Bristol), Luke Cowan-Dickie (Sale), Will Stuart (Bath); Maro Itoje (Saracens, capt), George Martin (Leicester); Tom Curry (Sale), Ben Curry (Sale), Ben Earl (Saracens).
Replacements: Theo Dan (Saracens), Fin Baxter (Harlequins), Joe Heyes (Leicester), Ollie Chessum (Leicester), Chandler Cunningham-South (Harlequins), Tom Willis (Saracens), Harry Randall (Bristol), Fin Smith (Northampton).
*Uncapped
