The England head coach, Steve Borthwick, has a chat with ITV: “Preparation has been excellent. It’s an exciting squad. We want to start out on the next step of this team … we’ve got guys who’ve been playing [for England] for a number of years, and guys who are just starting out … I’m looking forward to it.
“The way we’ve started this tournament in recent years hasn’t been what we hoped for, so there’s a need for a different mindset … we need to hit the ground running.”
On the new captain, Jamie George: “Jamie’s been superb. He’s been a leader in this team for a number of years … bringing a new group together, the first day in camp was a bit quiet, but he’s gradually allowed them to bring all their character to the group.”
On ITV, Maggie Alphonsi cites Ben Stokes’ leadership with England’s cricketers, saying that Jamie George wants to bring a smattering of that to the rugby team. Has Maggie seen the score?
It will be fascinating to see how England approach the game. Henry Slade is back at No 13, having forced his way back in with some excellent form for Exeter, alongside the debutant Fraser Dingwall at inside-centre. George Ford at fly-half, Alex Mitchell at scrum-half, and a back three of Freddie Steward, Tommy Freeman and Elliot Daly. They should be able to cause plenty of havoc given the opportunity.
One day Italy will beat England at rugby union. Admittedly it has been more than a decade since the Azzurri finished within a score of their opponents but, as Steve Borthwick knows from experience, the possibility can never be entirely discounted. When he captained England at the old Stadio Flaminio in 2008 and 2010, the margins were a stuttering four and five points respectively.
Breaking team news is that England’s prop Ellis Genge, who was due to start on the bench, has been ruled out with a foot injury. Beno Obano of Bath comes into the squad to replace him.
Italy: Tommaso Allan; Ange Capuozzo, Ignacio Brex, Tommaso Menoncello, Monty Ioane; Paolo Garbisi, Alessandro Garbisi; Lorenzo Cannone, Michele Lamaro (capt.), Sebastian Negri, Federico Ruzza, Niccolò Cannone, Pietro Ceccarelli, Gianmarco Lucchesi, Danilo Fischetti. Replacements: Giacomo Nicotera, Mirco Spagnolo, Giosue Zilocchi, Andrea Zambonin, Edoardo Iachizzi, Manuel Zuliani, Stephen Varney, Lorenzo Pani.
England: Freddie Steward; Tommy Freeman, Henry Slade, Fraser Dingwall, Elliot Daly; George Ford, Alex Mitchell; Joe Marler, Jamie George (capt.), Will Stuart, Maro Itoje, Ollie Chessum, Ethan Roots, Sam Underhill, Ben Earl. Replacements: Theo Dan, Beno Obano, Dan Cole, Alex Coles, Chandler Cunningham-South, Danny Care, Fin Smith, Immanuel Feyi-Waboso.
Remember “New England”? Well, they’re back. But New England 2.0 really are quite different, rather than being just an empty soundbite. The long-standing captain Owen Farrell is off to France in the summer having already stepped back from international duty, joining the thrusting young wing Henry Arundell at Racing 92. Red Rose stalwarts such as Courtney Lawes, Ben Youngs and Jonny May are gone for good, retiring from England duty following a third-placed finish at the 2023 Rugby World Cup, with the hooker Jamie George taking the captain’s armband.
Northampton’s Fraser Dingwall and Ethan Roots of Exeter both make their debuts in Rome today, with another Saint, Tommy Freeman, lining up on the wing to claim his fourth cap. There are set to be three debutants off the bench, too, with Chandler Cunningham-South (Harlequins), Fin Smith (Northampton), and Immanuel Feyi-Waboso (Exeter) all among the replacements. Unlike last year the head coach, Steve Borthwick, has had more than month to get his ducks in a row, so this is a big tournament for him after that creditable recent effort over in France.
New Italy, meanwhile, means a first crack at the Six Nations for the Azzurri’s new coach, Gonzalo Quesada. The playing staff has a familiar look to it, but can the former Argentina fly-half inject the cohesion and competitiveness that’s often been so sorely lacking for the traditional wooden-spoon champions?