MARO ITOJE WILL be wearing a pair of custom-made boots as he earns his 100th cap for England against Ireland in the Six Nations today at Twickenham [KO 2.10pm, RTÉ2].
The English skipper’s special footwear will be hard to miss, given the glamorous metallic gold colour that covers the bottom half of them.
The top half is a red colour called ‘cardinal’, which is apparently inspired by a team tradition whereby England debutants have to have a drink with every member of the team after their first cap. Itoje debuted in Rome, so they were all on the red wine.
Cardinal, claret, crimson. Call it what you want, it looks more than a bit like blood splattered over these fancy boots.
And there’s no doubt that England are out for some of that today as Ireland visit ‘HQ’ a week on from Steve Borthwick’s side losing to Scotland in the Calcutta Cup, thus ending a 12-game winning run.
If it’s channelled in the right way, that defeat could be a good lesson for England as they build towards their goal of winning the 2027 World Cup. Certainly, that’s how Borthwick and his players will be viewing it. A blip on their upward trajectory.
Ireland stand in the way of the English intent to get back on track.
Andy Farrell’s side lost narrowly at Twickenham on their most recent visit. It was a game when Ireland let a winning position slip at the death, Marcus Smith landing a drop goal on penalty advantage with the clock in the red.
Yet, Ireland have had a good record against this English crew. They beat them well in Dublin last year, two late English tries making the final 27-22 scoreline look better than the reality of Ireland’s bonus-point win.
That made it five wins for Ireland in their last six meetings with England, which is a record that Borthwick’s men want to start putting right.
Henry Pollock gets his first Test start for England. Billy Stickland / INPHO
Billy Stickland / INPHO / INPHO
There’s also the more pertinent fact that England need to win today if they are to reignite their Six Nations title challenge. With away games against Italy and France to come in the closing two rounds, they simply cannot slip up here.
So there is no shortage of reasons why they should be back at their ferocious best as Farrell’s men look for what would be an upset victory. England are 10-point favourites for this game.
And yet, the scenario is similar for Ireland. A win here puts them on the right track for a Triple Crown with home games against Wales and Scotland still to come. It would also leave them ready to take advantage of any French slip-ups. Farrell’s men can change all the negative mood music around them with a stirring win in Twickers.
The chief concern for Ireland appears to be their scrum, which Italy dominated last weekend in Dublin. The Italian scrum is very good, with France adjusting their pack to account for that ahead of their clash with the Azzurri tomorrow, but England’s has also been good in the last couple of years.
It was one of the strong points in last weekend’s defeat to the Scots, with loosehead prop Ellis Genge doing enough damage to bring opposite man Zander Fagerson under a yellow-card warning. England won the penalty count 3-1 and will look to pile into Ireland there, with referee Andrea Piardi likely to have a lively challenge.
Ireland have backed hooker Dan Sheehan and loosehead Jeremy Loughman to be part of a better scrum effort as they start again, while the experienced Tadhg Furlong comes into the side after appearing off the bench last time, bringing punch around the park but getting shunted into the air at one scrum.
Lots of the rest of England’s game struggled as they had an off day in Edinburgh. It’s rare to see Sam Underhill miss two tackles in the same passage, while there were a multitude of attacking errors from the likes of Genge and Itoje down in the Scottish 22.
You cannot write off the Scottish attacking quality, yet it has to be noted that 28 or their 31 points came during the 30 minutes when England wing Henry Arundell was off the pitch due to a yellow card, then his 20-minute red.
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Scotland took full advantage with four converted tries in those periods, playing a freewheeling, risk-taking, high-tempo type of rugby that you wonder if Ireland have in them. England thrive in structured games of rugby, but Scotland made them uncomfortable with their approach, even accounting for the numerical disadvantage.
Ireland's scrum needs to bounce back. Billy Stickland / INPHO
Billy Stickland / INPHO / INPHO
Ireland have to take this English team out of their comfort zone or they will simply be playing into Borthwick’s well-calculated plans.
The England boss has reacted by making three changes to his starting XV. They appear to make them stronger. Ollie Lawrence comes in to give midfield power, meaning Tommy Freeman reverts to the right wing, where he can be such a menace. Tom Curry brings his relentless work rate to the number seven shirt.
And then there’s number eight Henry Pollock, who gets his first Test start at the age of 21. He can be a game changer, so Ireland need to get him on the ground and keep him there as often as possible, on both sides of the ball.
As for Farrell, he has made five changes to his starting XV and essentially backed experience with each of them.
Josh van der Flier, Tadhg Beirne, Tadhg Furlong, Jamison Gibson-Park, and Jack Crowley come into the side, bringing lots of nous and know-how. A few less experienced players – Cormac Izuchukwu, Thomas Clarkson, Craig Casey, and Sam Prendergast – make way, while the warhorse Jack Conan switches to a bench role despite being crucial to the win over Italy. Finlay Bealham is another senior figure who returns to the 23.
It is a somewhat typical selection from Farrell, as he continues with his longstanding habit of showing faith in the experienced men who helped Ireland to glorious heights in the not-too-distant past. It’s a grizzled team full of nous. Farrell clearly doesn’t think Twickenham is the place for more inexperienced players to have a crack.
So there’s no place in the matchday 23 for last weekend’s debutant, Edwin Edogbo, or Izuchuwku, who did well at blindside flanker, with Farrell opting to switch to a 5/3 bench selection.
The inclusion of Tommy O’Brien on the bench, along with the versatile Ciarán Frawley, is an indication that right wing Robert Baloucoune is a slight injury concern, along with outside centre Garry Ringrose. Baloucoune, who has had hamstring troubles in the recent past, had strapping on his upper right leg during yesterday’s captain’s run, but Ireland will hope he has no issues.
Baloucoune brought speed and panache for Farrell’s side against Italy on his Six Nations debut, and did well in all of the aerial and defensive duties that are demanded of international wings.
Andy Farrell at Twickenham yesterday. Billy Stickland / INPHO
Billy Stickland / INPHO / INPHO
You get the sense that Ireland will need a few moments of magic from Baloucoune or James Lowe or someone else if they’re to upset the odds here in London. The forwards need to be muscular and they must apply maximum pressure onto George Ford in England’s number 10 jersey.
On the other side, Crowley comes into the number 10 shirt for Ireland fresh from impacting off the bench against Italy. He has had some brilliant Tests in his 32 caps so far and Farrell would love to see him at his instinctive best, even while controlling Ireland’s game plan.
There is a hint of fear that this could be another one like Paris if Ireland don’t fire early shots. They simply cannot afford to be as reactive as they were that night at Stade de France. That whiff of fear can be a good thing.
England probably believe there is blood in the water, but Ireland will have seen last weekend as an example of how the English are fallible. Farrell’s men need to go on the offensive from the first minute.
ENGLAND: Freddie Steward; Tommy Freeman, Ollie Lawrence, Fraser Dingwall, Henry Arundell; George Ford, Alex Mitchell; Ellis Genge, Luke Cowan-Dickie, Joe Heyes; Maro Itoje (captain), Ollie Chessum; Tom Curry, Ben Earl, Henry Pollock.
Replacements: Jamie George, Bevan Rodd, Trevor Davison, Alex Coles, Guy Pepper, Sam Underhill, Jack van Poortvliet, Marcus Smith.
IRELAND: Jamie Osborne; Robert Baloucoune, Garry Ringrose, Stuart McCloskey, James Lowe; Jack Crowley, Jamison Gibson-Park; Jeremy Loughman, Dan Sheehan, Tadhg Furlong; Joe McCarthy, James Ryan; Tadhg Beirne, Josh van der Flier, Caelan Doris (captain).
Replacements: Ronán Kelleher, Tom O’Toole, Finlay Bealham, Nick Timoney, Jack Conan, Craig Casey, Ciarán Frawley, Tommy O’Brien.
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Blood in the water? Or fallible England? A big test for Ireland in London
MARO ITOJE WILL be wearing a pair of custom-made boots as he earns his 100th cap for England against Ireland in the Six Nations today at Twickenham [KO 2.10pm, RTÉ2].
The English skipper’s special footwear will be hard to miss, given the glamorous metallic gold colour that covers the bottom half of them.
The top half is a red colour called ‘cardinal’, which is apparently inspired by a team tradition whereby England debutants have to have a drink with every member of the team after their first cap. Itoje debuted in Rome, so they were all on the red wine.
Cardinal, claret, crimson. Call it what you want, it looks more than a bit like blood splattered over these fancy boots.
And there’s no doubt that England are out for some of that today as Ireland visit ‘HQ’ a week on from Steve Borthwick’s side losing to Scotland in the Calcutta Cup, thus ending a 12-game winning run.
If it’s channelled in the right way, that defeat could be a good lesson for England as they build towards their goal of winning the 2027 World Cup. Certainly, that’s how Borthwick and his players will be viewing it. A blip on their upward trajectory.
Ireland stand in the way of the English intent to get back on track.
Andy Farrell’s side lost narrowly at Twickenham on their most recent visit. It was a game when Ireland let a winning position slip at the death, Marcus Smith landing a drop goal on penalty advantage with the clock in the red.
Yet, Ireland have had a good record against this English crew. They beat them well in Dublin last year, two late English tries making the final 27-22 scoreline look better than the reality of Ireland’s bonus-point win.
That made it five wins for Ireland in their last six meetings with England, which is a record that Borthwick’s men want to start putting right.
There’s also the more pertinent fact that England need to win today if they are to reignite their Six Nations title challenge. With away games against Italy and France to come in the closing two rounds, they simply cannot slip up here.
So there is no shortage of reasons why they should be back at their ferocious best as Farrell’s men look for what would be an upset victory. England are 10-point favourites for this game.
And yet, the scenario is similar for Ireland. A win here puts them on the right track for a Triple Crown with home games against Wales and Scotland still to come. It would also leave them ready to take advantage of any French slip-ups. Farrell’s men can change all the negative mood music around them with a stirring win in Twickers.
The chief concern for Ireland appears to be their scrum, which Italy dominated last weekend in Dublin. The Italian scrum is very good, with France adjusting their pack to account for that ahead of their clash with the Azzurri tomorrow, but England’s has also been good in the last couple of years.
It was one of the strong points in last weekend’s defeat to the Scots, with loosehead prop Ellis Genge doing enough damage to bring opposite man Zander Fagerson under a yellow-card warning. England won the penalty count 3-1 and will look to pile into Ireland there, with referee Andrea Piardi likely to have a lively challenge.
Ireland have backed hooker Dan Sheehan and loosehead Jeremy Loughman to be part of a better scrum effort as they start again, while the experienced Tadhg Furlong comes into the side after appearing off the bench last time, bringing punch around the park but getting shunted into the air at one scrum.
Lots of the rest of England’s game struggled as they had an off day in Edinburgh. It’s rare to see Sam Underhill miss two tackles in the same passage, while there were a multitude of attacking errors from the likes of Genge and Itoje down in the Scottish 22.
You cannot write off the Scottish attacking quality, yet it has to be noted that 28 or their 31 points came during the 30 minutes when England wing Henry Arundell was off the pitch due to a yellow card, then his 20-minute red.
Scotland took full advantage with four converted tries in those periods, playing a freewheeling, risk-taking, high-tempo type of rugby that you wonder if Ireland have in them. England thrive in structured games of rugby, but Scotland made them uncomfortable with their approach, even accounting for the numerical disadvantage.
Ireland have to take this English team out of their comfort zone or they will simply be playing into Borthwick’s well-calculated plans.
The England boss has reacted by making three changes to his starting XV. They appear to make them stronger. Ollie Lawrence comes in to give midfield power, meaning Tommy Freeman reverts to the right wing, where he can be such a menace. Tom Curry brings his relentless work rate to the number seven shirt.
And then there’s number eight Henry Pollock, who gets his first Test start at the age of 21. He can be a game changer, so Ireland need to get him on the ground and keep him there as often as possible, on both sides of the ball.
As for Farrell, he has made five changes to his starting XV and essentially backed experience with each of them.
Josh van der Flier, Tadhg Beirne, Tadhg Furlong, Jamison Gibson-Park, and Jack Crowley come into the side, bringing lots of nous and know-how. A few less experienced players – Cormac Izuchukwu, Thomas Clarkson, Craig Casey, and Sam Prendergast – make way, while the warhorse Jack Conan switches to a bench role despite being crucial to the win over Italy. Finlay Bealham is another senior figure who returns to the 23.
It is a somewhat typical selection from Farrell, as he continues with his longstanding habit of showing faith in the experienced men who helped Ireland to glorious heights in the not-too-distant past. It’s a grizzled team full of nous. Farrell clearly doesn’t think Twickenham is the place for more inexperienced players to have a crack.
So there’s no place in the matchday 23 for last weekend’s debutant, Edwin Edogbo, or Izuchuwku, who did well at blindside flanker, with Farrell opting to switch to a 5/3 bench selection.
The inclusion of Tommy O’Brien on the bench, along with the versatile Ciarán Frawley, is an indication that right wing Robert Baloucoune is a slight injury concern, along with outside centre Garry Ringrose. Baloucoune, who has had hamstring troubles in the recent past, had strapping on his upper right leg during yesterday’s captain’s run, but Ireland will hope he has no issues.
Baloucoune brought speed and panache for Farrell’s side against Italy on his Six Nations debut, and did well in all of the aerial and defensive duties that are demanded of international wings.
You get the sense that Ireland will need a few moments of magic from Baloucoune or James Lowe or someone else if they’re to upset the odds here in London. The forwards need to be muscular and they must apply maximum pressure onto George Ford in England’s number 10 jersey.
On the other side, Crowley comes into the number 10 shirt for Ireland fresh from impacting off the bench against Italy. He has had some brilliant Tests in his 32 caps so far and Farrell would love to see him at his instinctive best, even while controlling Ireland’s game plan.
There is a hint of fear that this could be another one like Paris if Ireland don’t fire early shots. They simply cannot afford to be as reactive as they were that night at Stade de France. That whiff of fear can be a good thing.
England probably believe there is blood in the water, but Ireland will have seen last weekend as an example of how the English are fallible. Farrell’s men need to go on the offensive from the first minute.
ENGLAND: Freddie Steward; Tommy Freeman, Ollie Lawrence, Fraser Dingwall, Henry Arundell; George Ford, Alex Mitchell; Ellis Genge, Luke Cowan-Dickie, Joe Heyes; Maro Itoje (captain), Ollie Chessum; Tom Curry, Ben Earl, Henry Pollock.
Replacements: Jamie George, Bevan Rodd, Trevor Davison, Alex Coles, Guy Pepper, Sam Underhill, Jack van Poortvliet, Marcus Smith.
IRELAND: Jamie Osborne; Robert Baloucoune, Garry Ringrose, Stuart McCloskey, James Lowe; Jack Crowley, Jamison Gibson-Park; Jeremy Loughman, Dan Sheehan, Tadhg Furlong; Joe McCarthy, James Ryan; Tadhg Beirne, Josh van der Flier, Caelan Doris (captain).
Replacements: Ronán Kelleher, Tom O’Toole, Finlay Bealham, Nick Timoney, Jack Conan, Craig Casey, Ciarán Frawley, Tommy O’Brien.
Referee: Andrea Piardi [FIR].
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