At last; substance and style, in the same game. On a bright spring day, England played bright attacking rugby, to win without another asterisk denoting negative tactics.
It was a chaotic riot of pulsating positivity at Twickenham, after the dull kick-fest against Scotland two weeks earlier. It was England’s third successive win in this Six Nations and the first one which was delivered with a swagger and a flourish. While it was far from flawless, with periods of lost control, defensive lapses and a last-quarter drift, there was intent to play with freedom and the capacity crowd lapped it up.
This was a statement of renewed hope and potential, against an Italy side who produced moments of glittering class, interspersed with glaring mediocrity. England scored seven tries in an emphatic, bonus-point win. It surely won’t be enough to secure the championship title, unless Scotland can stun France in Paris on Saturday, but Steve Borthwick’s team will travel to Cardiff confident that they have the firepower and momentum to beat Wales and complete a four-out-of-five campaign.
Last year, English creativity often came in a losing cause. Last month, one-point wins over the French and Scots featured a sustained barrage of box-kicks, prompting boos and unrest. The backlash led to vice-captain Ellis Genge taking aim at ‘out of touch’ critics including former players, but that won’t be an issue after this win. There will be small-detail quibbles amid an up-beat verdict.
From the fourth minute when the first try was scored, this was more like it; the sort of ambitious play which generates public support and satisfaction, albeit against a team who shipped 73 points in their last game, at home against France. England even had the audacity to off-load the ball to each other, which was a welcome novelty.
Some of the handling from backs and forwards alike was glorious to behold. Prop Will Stuart started side-stepping defenders. Whatever next? For Ollie Sleightholme’s second try of the game, there was a dazzling demonstration of handling from members of the England pack. Here’s hoping it is not a flash in the pan because there were heartening glimpses of players using their instincts and not being stifled by a slavish devotion to data and strict orders.
England eased past Italy to keep their Six Nations title hopes alive going into their final game
England secured a 47-24 win – their biggest margin of victory at this year’s tournament
They face last-placed Wales in Cardiff next Saturday and must win to stand a chance at beating France to the title
Of course, it couldn’t all go entirely to plan. There was collateral damage as Ollie Lawrence departed early on with an injury which left him with a protective boot on his left leg.
It meant that Borthwick’s decision to drop Marcus Smith to the bench was soon made redundant as the Harlequins playmaker ended up on the field for more than 70 minutes anyway. He brought the house down with a fine try in the second half, after initially struggling to settle into the helter-skelter contest.
This was England’s 26th consecutive Six Nations victory over Italy and it allowed Jamie George to enjoy the grand occasion of his 100th Test appearance for his country. The former captain played well, as did his leadership successor, Maro Itoje and so many others including Ollie Chessum – the official Man of the Match, Tom and Ben Curry, Ben Earl, Fin Smith and Tommy Freeman.
This time, unlike in the Calcutta Cup fixture, Alex Mitchell set his stall out to attack from deep, rather than keep just booting the ball to the sky. His Northampton half-back partner, Fin Smith, was an unflappable presence when England were under pressure in the first half. Some of his distribution was supreme and he landed six conversions out of seven, but most encouraging was the composure which saw him find a way out of some tight corners with calm precision.
England burst out of the blocks with an early try and it was a long-range blockbuster. Elliot Daly ran the ball from his own 22 to ignite the daring raid and Fin Smith’s long pass released Freeman wide on the right. He surged forward and picked out Tom Curry’s supporting run inside, and when the rampaging flanker was stopped deep in the visitors’ 22, Mitchell sent Tom Willis crashing over.
Italy rallied and full-back Ange Capuozzo touched down from a kick through by Monty Ioane on the right. But just before the half-hour, against the run of play, England struck again. Earl ran back a drop-out and quick passing to the right allowed Daly to kick cleverly towards the corner, where Freeman gathered and stepped in-field to score.
Undeterred, back came Italy to level the match again, as Capuozzo scorched clear from a quick lineout and his reverse pass set up Exeter No 8 Ross Vintcent’s galloping finish. But five minutes before the break, Borthwick’s side regained the lead. From a penalty in the opposition 22, they pounded towards the line and Marcus Smith’s long pass freed Sleightholme to sprint in at the corner.
A penalty by Paolo Garbisi cut the gap to four points but soon after the re-start, England turned the screw. After Stuart showed off nifty footwork, Tom Curry charged hard in midfield and from his offload, Marcus Smith broke a tackle then swerved around Capuozzo and off to the line.
Sunday afternoon’s result was England’s 26th consecutive Six Nations victory over Italy
England’s seven-try victory margin was the third-largest in any game at the 2025 Six Nations
Three minutes later, the rampant hosts claimed another try. From a driving maul, Tom Curry made another aggressive dent in the opposition defence. Mitchell sniped towards the line and from the next ruck, there was Tom Curry again to pick up and drive over.
The onslaught continued, with bells on. The next England try was a showcase of forward handling as Itoje delivered an overhead off-load, Ben Curry released the ball deftly one-handed and George did the same to set up Sleightholme’s second try. That was the hooker’s last act before he went off to noisy acclaim from the stands.
Italy didn’t surrender; they stemmed the points flow and had a try by Tommaso Menoncello to show for improved work in the final quarter. But their fate had already been sealed. England were well clear and they disappeared out of sight at the death as Ben Curry stole the ball and sent Earl away for a try on the left.
A midfield reshuffle and defensive improvements will be the priority issues in the coming days, ahead of a trip to the Welsh capital. But England are still – theoretically at least – in the title mix going into Super Sunday and, given the trouble they endured in 2024, that is a sign of tangible progress at last.
