England head coach Steve Borthwick revealed plans to utilise “ball of energy” Henry Pollock as a winger were already in motion after his decisive try put Australia to bed at Twickenham.
Pollock lit up a disjointed contest at Allianz Stadium with the crucial score eight minutes after coming off the bench, as his superb pick-up on the move and finish after recovering from a tap tackle propelled England to a 25-7 victory over the Wallabies.
It was the 20-year-old’s third Test try in a career rising exponentially, despite just two substitute appearances – and Borthwick is already convinced by his infectious energy.
“Everybody’s excited when Henry Pollock gets on to the pitch because of what he brings, there’s no doubt about that,” Borthwick said.
“He’s probably the most excited person! The way he is and the energy he brings – he’s a ball of energy.
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James Cole and Jack Wilkinson give their verdict as England extend their winning run with a victory over Australia in the Autumn Nations Series opener
“I love having that character in the squad. We’ve got a great blend of personalities developing within the team.”
Pollock followed in the footsteps of Ben Earl, who scythed through Australia with a frighteningly quick break that delivered the first of England’s four tries after 21 minutes.
The scintillating nature of their scores reinforced Borthwick’s commitment to unleashing pace from the forward pack.
Henry Pollock scored a try after coming off the bench
Earl showcased his versatility by starring at centre during England’s record 68-14 win over Wales in the Six Nations, and Borthwick confirmed he’d have no hesitation starting him there again, with the wheels in motion for Pollock to follow suit.
“It’s going to be important to have flexibility in position, especially if we continue with 6-2 [split on bench],” Borthwick added.
“I’d be quite happy to start Ben Earl in the centres. I talked in the week about the possibility of starting Henry on the wing. It’s certainly a project we have started, to be able to cover that in a game should we need to.
“We started the Ben Earl project a long time ago and have drip fed that into training before he did so well against Wales away at the end of the Six Nations.
Borthwick said he would no hesitate to start Ben Earl at centre
“This is another project we’ve started with Henry. You would expect me to be thinking about things, to put this into planning, and that is exactly what we are doing.”
The introduction of England’s heavyweight bench, which included five British and Irish Lions forwards arriving en masse in the 52nd minute, proved decisive in extinguishing Australia’s challenge.
Fiji are the next visitors to Twickenham in the second of November’s four Tests and Borthwick admitted the performance of his replacements will make team selection trickier next week.
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England captain Maro Itoje was full of praise for his team-mate Luke Cowan-Dickie, who scored on his 50th appearance for England.
“The bench certainly had a positive impact. It’s a sign that the squad is building in depth,” Borthwick said.
“It was an important summer for English rugby with a number of players away with the Lions, who were successful down in Australia, as well as a number away in Argentina and America with England.
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Australia head coach Joe Schmidt believes accusations that the side infringe at the breakdown prior to the match was
“It’s enabled the squad to grow and that’s pleasing. It means I’ve got some difficult decisions to make. It’s the exact decisions you want as a head coach.”
England’s Autumn Nations Series schedule
November 1
England 25-7 Australia – Allianz Stadium, Twickenham
November 8
England vs Fiji – Allianz Stadium, Twickenham (5.40pm)
November 15
England vs New Zealand – Allianz Stadium, Twickenham (3.10pm)
November 23
England vs Argentina – Allianz Stadium, Twickenham (4.10pm)
