Successful autumn can ignite England’s World Cup charge – but they must beware Australia trap

Pity a household with split English and Australian loyalties, for these are busy and uncomfortable weeks. In rugby league, football and now rugby union, a travelling menagerie of arriving antipodeans have travelled north to test themselves against their favourite foe; the Kangaroos successfully, the Matildas rather less so. The familiar mocking woodworms herald an Ashes down under and accompanying phoney war on the way; heck, even Formula One title rivals Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri are best of Anglo-Australian frenemies at McLaren.

One hundred and fifty years since it sparked in the last days of colonialism, this rivalry still burns brightly. England players who toured with the Lions in the summer have since marvelled at a welcome that was hospitable and hostile in equal measure, whetting the appetite for what may face the Poms on their return for the 2027 Rugby World Cup. With the Ashes in mind, Steve Borthwick recently met with Brendon McCullum to pick the brains of an unorthodox coach who has transformed the perception of English Test cricket, and to wish his side well in their attempt to finally conquer Australia in their own backyard again.

An era-defining challenge may not be quite so imminent for Borthwick’s side, but this campaign would seem to mark the start of a different phase of the team’s development. If the first two years of this World Cup cycle has been a feeling-and-finding-out process, there is recognition that England need to kick on and kick up a gear if they are to fully establish themselves as contenders for the tournament in two years. That period, Borthwick and his coaches understand, will fly by – and there has been a shift in the language used by senior members of the squad and staff as England target the twin goals of winning now and best preparing for success in 2027.

It is for this reason that Tom Willis – still available despite agreeing a switch to the Top 14 at the end of the season – has been jettisoned, with Borthwick not wishing to put time into those who are not fully committed to their World Cup quest. If it leaves England without their best bar-room brawler in tighter confines, so be it, as Borthwick starts to refine his ideal identity. The head coach has sought to consciously correct some of the misconceptions around him; while he will remain data-driven, he has always been a bolder, more ambitious selector than some would suggest, and is making extended efforts to convey his vision.

The identity is one that will be built around following the trends of Test rugby, focusing heavily on the aerial battle, with contestable kicks very much in vogue, as well as making use of a frankly staggering array of scavenging back-row riches in a mobile, mischievous back row. Within that also comes a desire to weaponise the bench, in the way that South Africa and France have so successfully, and start Tommy Freeman on a long-panned midfield development track. The additions of Lee Blackett and Byron McGuigan to a beefed-up coaching team further clarify their renewed sense of direction; recent visitors to camp have included Mako Vunipola and Danny Care, both of whom have remarked on the intensity with which England are training.

“I think, particularly for guys at the top, those four-year cycles split into two and two,” captain Maro Itoje explained. “You want to be part of the Lions tour and part of the World Cup. They are the two big international landmarks where most of the world’s attention is on rugby in those periods.

“We want to do really well in 2027. But in order for us to do that and have the best chance, we have these really important games in the build-up. You don’t just rock up to a World Cup and win. Often, a World Cup is a reflection of your body of work. Now we are trying to put together our body of work for that.

“The direction of travel is incredibly exciting and for someone like me, at my stage of my career, it gives me so much motivation to keep going, but it also gives me belief that this team is moving in the right direction. We need to be consistent, and we need to continue to build over time, but I think there’s no mountain we can’t climb.”

There is real, understandable optimism about a squad that has won its last seven Tests, yet England will beware a pitfall trap that opens their autumn. It was the Wallabies who last November delivered one of Borthwick’s most frustrating days, the home side straying from their strategy and being dragged into an end-to-end romp, eventually edged most magnificently by Max Jorgensen’s last-gasp try.

It was a result that perhaps proved the first indicator of real growth under Joe Schmidt for the Wallabies. The veteran coach’s tenure will end after this European tour, but there can be no doubting that the foundations torn away by his predecessor, Eddie Jones, are back in place for the incoming Les Kiss to build on. While the Rugby Championship and Lions series have again proved Australia consistently inconsistent, they now have the aptitude and attitude to mix it with the world’s best.

The time together they have had in recent months, further aided by a trip to Tokyo last weekend, may be necessary to lift a squad without a few of its best individuals as they target another Twickenham toppling. This fixture falls outside of the Test window specified in World Rugby’s Regulation 9, meaning Len Ikitau and Tom Hooper, new Chiefs, are acquainting themselves with Exeter and Will Skelton remains at La Rochelle – it is a shame not to have both sides at full strength, but commercially, an extra international is welcome.

Also absent, and heightening the focus on a problem position for Schmidt, is James O’Connor, who may yet have played his last Wallabies Test after answering an SOS earlier this year. No doubt, Australia are in need of a long-term solution at fly-half – having moved to bring Carter Gordon back from the NRL, a thigh injury will delay his return by a week at least. It leaves Tane Edmed, who spent time at semi-professional level in Sydney earlier this year, to wear the No 10 again. “All we can do is keep investing in the people we’ve got,” Schmidt said. “You learn from experiences, and that allows you to get better – and getting better is never linear either. There are going to be tough moments for Tane, and we know that, and there are going to be some really good moments.”

Australia are resource-rich with backline athletes, but how they must crave the playmaking options in the home camp. Marcus Smith, Fin Smith and George Ford will all have major roles to play for Borthwick over the next couple of years, yet it is little surprise that he has stuck with Ford, who marshalled a younger group so well in Argentina.

Having spent this time last year wringing their hands over a series of narrow defeats to top nations, now England arrive after seven successive victories. To squander that momentum would be a major blow as the long lead-in to the World Cup really begins.

“I reckon you could pick three XVs and all three of them could go this autumn and win four from four,” Ben Earl declared last week. “That is where England is at right now, and that’s awesome. Eighty per cent of this group has been together since this time last year, and that has to mean something for us now. We have to start picking up where we left off rather than starting from square one again.”