England’s head coach Steve Borthwick is urging his players to act smarter and recognise the vital importance of keeping 15 players on the field before a pivotal month for the national team. Borthwick’s side have been shown 14 yellow cards and one red in 2026 to date and, partly as a consequence, have lost five of their past seven Tests.
Borthwick is also concerned that different refereeing interpretations in the domestic Prem are not helping England at international level, with the latest complication being a mid-season law change preventing so called “hip drop” tackles. His experienced prop Ellis Genge has called the timing of the alteration “berserk” but also fully accepts England must improve their disciplinary record in their autumn Nations Championship fixtures.
All national coaches were invited to a meeting with officials on Sunday to discover how exactly the November games will be refereed but Borthwick has already identified two key areas where England need to be watchful. “From my point of view there are some aspects we need to bridge from club rugby to Test rugby.
“One would be the contact area. I think that was probably exemplified by last month’s Champions Cup round where the English clubs lost more ball at the breakdown than any other nation and won less back. That’s telling us straight away there’s a situation we need to bridge. When you look at the teams we are playing against in the next few weeks there is a big breakdown challenge coming.”
Borthwick is also highlighting defensive steel – “We need to ensure we make it very, very difficult for the opposition to score” – which he also believes is not being aided by the four-try bonus-point system in the Prem. He would prefer the adoption of the French system where teams must score three tries more than their opponents to secure an extra point. “My view on the bonus-point structure is that it shouldn’t be the way it is,” he confirmed.
“I think the evidence says it should follow the Top 14, which makes defence important right until the 80th minute. I think that’s not necessarily always the case [in the Prem]. Nobody’s to blame or at fault, that’s just the way it’s structured.”
As for his side’s tactical discipline, Borthwick has also changed his tune since July when he dubbed the media “the negativity committee” in the wake of the 31-24 win over Argentina in Santiago del Estero after he was asked about England’s concession of four yellow cards in the second half. “The best players are smart and the best players adjust,” said Borthwick, who invited the referee Christophe Ridley to address his players last week.
“I think it’s pretty obvious there have been times over the last six to eight months when we haven’t dealt with moments the way we want to. At the 2023 World Cup this team had excellent habits … really it’s been the autumn of 2025 into this year’s Six Nations that cost us.
“Quite frankly we spend too much time defending. The way the interpretations are right now there is likely to be a decision that goes against you which gives an entry into the 22. As soon as you are there, we can all see the number of cards. We spent too much time there … we want to get the ball back faster.”
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On the subject of outlawed “hip-drop” tackles, when players try to bring down an opponent from behind by sliding in on their knees and dropping their weight on to the opponent’s lower limbs, Borthwick also wants his players to learn fast ahead of Sunday’s game against Australia. “I don’t think we can argue against anything that protects the players who play this intense game. What we’ve got to be is the quickest team to adjust.”
Genge believes the sport as a whole needs to stop altering its regulations for the sake of the players and new fans. “I think the fact our game after all this time still changes rules year to year is berserk, particularly when we’re speaking about making it palatable for new people to come in. I think it’s mental but I assume they’re trying to refine it for the best.”
Meanwhile, England also have fresh injury concerns at scrum-half with Northampton’s Alex Mitchell (hamstring) and the uncapped Archie McParland (calf) both struggling. With fly-half Fin Smith (calf) already in a race against time to face the Wallabies, the management may well now have to start Leicester’s Jack van Poortvliet at nine, potentially with either Marcus Smith or George Ford outside him.
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