England v Fiji – Fall International Rugby Overview

Like the silver birches near my house at this time of year, the English side during fall presents a varied display. Their appeal stems from transformations and natural progress, ahead of the certain deterioration that results in widespread disarray that you must spend weeks clearing up in a foul mood. Plus, the rain has begun to fall.

Steve Borthwick will powerfully wish to change this picture and it’s started OK for him. The first triumph over the Wallabies in the current autumn series surpasses the results from 2024, a period featuring three dismal defeats interrupted by a routine win against Japan acting as the final note in the closing 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, and a trend of unhappiness trailed each match result. This year, valuable lessons have been absorbed, with the success against the Wallabies leading into the current match with Fiji providing a moment to solidify the optimistic atmosphere.

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 are perennial strugglers in this fixture. A win in the 2023 World Cup warm up games their solitary victory in nine tests vs today’s opposition.

England is perhaps the top team globally when it comes to defeating sides they are expected to beat; they remain the only side undefeated by Italy in the Six Nations for example, with infrequent losses to second-tier teams.