The English Team versus the Fijian Squad – Autumn Nations Series Overview

Much like the silver birches in my neighborhood in autumn, the English side during fall presents a varied display. Their appeal stems from transformations and natural progress, before the inevitable atrophying dumps of loads of mess all over the place which requires weeks of cleanup amid frustration. And now, precipitation has commenced.

Steve Borthwick will powerfully wish to change this picture with a decent start already under his belt. The opening win over Australia in this year’s November is already better than 2024, which included three poor losses and only a basic victory over Japan acting as the final note in the closing week. There was extensive talk following the series downturn that the opening trio of NZ, Australia and Boks meant the fixtures were front loaded to a fault, and a trend of unhappiness trailed each match result. In 2025 lessons have been learned, with the win over the Wallabies followed with today’s outing against Fiji offering an opportunity to reinforce the good feelings.

The English squad shows many changes compared to last week's selection, and considering the talent present in the Fijian team, this might appear overconfident from Borthwick. Yet, despite the island nation's undeniable skill, they often find it tough in encounters with England. Only one victory in nine matches versus England occurred in the 2023 World Cup preparatory games.

The English side is widely regarded as the most efficient in dispatching opponents they ought to overcome easily; they hold the distinction of being unbeaten against Italy in the Six Nations, and rarely lose to tier two opponents.