On balance, Steve Borthwick’s first selection curveball of the Six Nations was successful. While the line-out was compromised, a back row compromising the Curry twins and Ben Earl embodied the energy and effort that allowed England to stay in touch with Ireland until the hour mark.
Borthwick tailored his tactics specifically for the opponent. He will do so again this weekend, which could mean Marcus Smith switching to full-back. We know this is a feasible option. Smith was first moved into that position for England during the World Cup warm-up matches in 2023, wearing 15 for the quarter-final against Fiji.
Last year, he spent 73 minutes of a gripping game in Lyon at full-back following George Furbank’s early injury. For several reasons, a return to this ploy on Saturday would make sense.
France’s kicking quirks
Long clearances have been one pillar of the Fabien Galthié regime and that characteristic seems to be continuing into the current Six Nations. France averaged 31.5m per kick against Wales, the highest figure of any team in round one according to Stats Perform.
Typically, when around their own 22 and further back, they put territory above anything else and ask their scrum-halves to prioritise distance from the base of rucks rather than hanging contestable box-kicks to win possession.
This is a classic example from Antoine Dupont in the first half. He is clearly aiming for metres and smacks the ball beyond the 10-metre line to Liam Williams:
Nolann Le Garrec hits a similar kick in the second period:
Both of these moments invite the opposition to run the ball back, as France tend to do – even if their kicking challenges defences in different ways. They won back possession with five of the 28 kicks they struck against Wales.
The first was a 50:22 from Thomas Ramos, with Dupont and Romain Ntamack also setting up tries with kick-passes to the wings. Around five minutes before half-time, this shallow Dupont dink was chased by Ntamack and recovered by Ramos:
Dupont then bounces backwards from the ensuing breakdown to thread a left-footed grubber that eventually brings about a five-metre scrum. Louis Bielle-Biarrey’s speed makes these kicks lethal:
Generally, though, France kick long and rivals have attempted to combat this. Ellis Genge dropped deep for England in 2022, with Freddie Steward moving to the wing and Eddie Jones picking Furbank at full-back. Some 18 months later, in a World Cup quarter-final, South Africa called for a scrum from a mark to persuade France to shorten their kicks.
Ireland targeted Smith as soon as he moved to full-back, with Jack Crowley going to the skies here and Henry Slade intercepting a ricochet off Hugo Keenan:
Against France, however, there are likely to be fewer contestable kicks. Rising above chasers to catch in heavy traffic will probably not be as valuable as anticipation and speed across the back-field.
If Borthwick also picks Ollie Chessum at blindside flanker to strengthen the England line-out, France may think twice about kicking to touch and potentially handing over a strong set-piece platform.
All of those connecting factors mean, theoretically, that Smith should find himself in space with an opportunity to counter. He will need to ensure that he does not run into traffic and concede breakdown turnovers, but England covet this source of possession.
Bringing out the best in Smith
There is a good argument to suggest that Smith’s best trait is his attacking instinct in broken-field situations and when returning kicks. In the second minute against Ireland, Jamison Gibson-Park box-kicks, Steward jumps with Garry Ringrose and the ball bobbles to Genge, who passes to Earl:
Earl opens up the pitch with a pass to Smith, who throws a dummy and breaks up the middle with the help of Tom Curry’s subtle block:
Around six minutes later, from Sam Prendergast’s clearance, Smith gathers and crosses the halfway line before offloading to Ollie Lawrence:
England’s first try results, with Smith moving the ball away from the final breakdown:
Now, these moments occurred while Smith was at fly-half. He spends plenty of time in the back-field when in that position anyway, but would have even more opportunities at full-back. Kick-return is obviously an important platform for England.
“In general, kick-return is where the defence is the least organised,” explained Tommy Freeman on Monday afternoon. “If we can get a decisive and dominant carry off the back of that and we can set ourselves nice and quickly into shape then there are loads of opportunities off the back of it.
“We definitely do focus on that. If we can get after that as much as possible then the opportunities will come.”
Equally, being at full-back would not prohibit Smith from stepping up at first-receiver as he does here to send Earl through the middle:
This cross-field chip to Cadan Murley came after Fin Smith had been brought off the bench, with Marcus Smith moving to full-back:
Although Steward has his own assets, and runs back kicks powerfully himself, Marcus Smith does so with more evasive footwork and is better at bringing others into play in those scenarios.
The playmaking poise of both Smiths combined should add clarity to England’s phase attack – allowing them to settle into shape more quickly – and pose threats on both sides of the ruck.
The contest was over when Tom Curry bagged the first of two consolation tries for England, yet the finish capped an attack full of variety that eventually broke down a stubborn Ireland defence:
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He may not touch the ball on that final phase, but Fin Smith shows his ability to coordinate a back line and impart width.
Balance to the back line
England’s attacking display against France 11 months ago was arguably their best of the Borthwick regime. For all but seven minutes their fly-half was George Ford, an understated facilitator, and Marcus Smith was at full-back.
The latter attracted defenders to help England outflank France with Slade’s cut-out pass to Freeman here in the lead-up to a close-range finish from Lawrence:
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Later on, Marcus Smith burst through to score himself off the shoulder of Earl…
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… and helped Ford to fashion a late try for Freeman as well:
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Against Australia in November, after he had moved to full-back, Marcus Smith was integral to two eye-catching tries. His break from a quick line-out instigated the move leading to Ollie Sleightholme’s second:
Before this clever grubber from second receiver set up the five-metre scrum from which England registered the try that really should have won them the game:
Ford is in England’s wider squad, of course. But if Borthwick does not turn to the 31-year-old, Fin Smith appears to organise players around him in a similar manner.
He also shares familiarity with Northampton Saints colleagues including Alex Mitchell, the starting scrum-half. Fraser Dingwall, another Northampton stalwart offered some fascinating insight to The Saints Show on BBC Radio Northampton earlier this season on the subject of the Smiths:
“Marcus and Fin are very different but they have some really good strengths. Fin’s ability to bring everyone into the game is really impressive, and he’s bringing more and more out of his running game. I’m not saying Marcus doesn’t do the same thing, but he has this natural ability to break lines and take people on himself. I think he sees opportunities slightly differently to Fin.
“Fin will do it with a unit, Marcus has the ability to do it with one other. It’s about how you blend those things. If I was to play with Fin, I would think about how I would complement him, knowing that he would allow everyone else to come into the game. Playing with Marcus, you’re thinking about creating opportunities for him.”
Blending those attributes as part of the same back line is a tantalising prospect. One or both of Freeman and Tom Roebuck could be fielded on the wings and urged to chase restarts and exert aerial pressure on France, as Steward was used in Dublin.
Defensively, Bundee Aki’s bulldozing run last weekend notwithstanding, Marcus Smith is brave and committed in defence. His yellow card at the Aviva Stadium was a result of his eagerness to scramble into position and protect his own try-line.
Dupont and co are highly unlikely to draw a blank. To beat France and right their Six Nations campaign as well as Borthwick’s tenure, England will need to be courageous in attack and trouble the defence.
Marcus Smith’s undoubted X-factor might well be England’s best chance of doing so. And, for this weekend at least, full-back could be the way to tap into it.
