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England explain their backing for Marcus Smith to stay on the kicks
By PA
England boss Steve Borthwick has backed “world-class goal-kicker” Marcus Smith to rediscover his aim from the tee during Saturday’s crunch Calcutta Cup showdown with Scotland. Having been shifted from fly-half to full-back to accommodate Fin Smith for the round-two clash with France, 26-year-old Marcus Smith wastefully skewed a conversion and a penalty during a 10-minute spell in the second half.
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Fin Smith then capped a standout first Test start by taking over duties and crucially adding the extras to tries from Fin Baxter and Elliot Daly to secure a thrilling 26-25 success which kept England in the hunt for the Guinness Six Nations title.
Borthwick, whose defence coach Kevin Sinfield instructed the in-game switch, confirmed the responsibility will revert to Marcus Smith at Allianz Stadium this weekend. “He is a world-class goal-kicker; we all know that, so it’s very simple,” said Borthwick.
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Harlequins playmaker Smith will have another run in the unfamiliar 15 position, where he enjoyed mixed fortunes against Les Bleus, after lock Ollie Chessum replaced George Martin in the only change to Borthwick’s starting XV. “Listen, Marcus is a game-changer; Marcus is a player with incredible ability,” said Borthwick.
“Sometimes, the opposition focuses very much on him. Sometimes, that creates space for others. Sometimes, there will be a window for him to find. With Fin Smith and Marcus Smith, we have two ball players, two people who see space in the front line and in the backfield, and that is going to be very important this weekend.”
Chessum will make his first international start since last year’s championship, having been ruled out of the summer tour to Japan and New Zealand and the autumn series by shoulder and knee injuries.
The 24-year-old will operate alongside captain Maro Itoje in the second row in a direct swap for Martin, who has been managing a knee problem and drops to the bench. “Very early on when I was at Leicester Tigers, he was identified by all the coaches as a guy who was going to grow into a big leadership role,” Borthwick said of Chessum.
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“Earlier this season he captained Leicester Tigers for the first time and, from every report I received, did it really well. He has grown into a lineout leader and caller which wasn’t something he had done previously. He is applying himself diligently to do that.
“All that points to a guy who wants to improve himself. He has the respect of everybody. He’s had a couple of injury setbacks and worked incredibly diligently to get back. When he walked back into the squad you could see how happy everyone else was. He has a presence and a positivity about him that rubs off on everyone else.”
England are seeking to snap a run of four successive defeats to Gregor Townsend’s side, dating back to 2021. Borthwick’s hosts are preparing to face the talents of rival fly-half Finn Russell, who is a doubt following a nasty head collision with team-mate Darcy Graham during Scotland’s round-two loss to Ireland.
“You would expect us to be thorough and plan as if Finn Russell is available and playing, but also planning – as you always do – for the next players in those key positions,” said Borthwick. “Scotland are very smart in the way they play and they have a 10 in Finn Russell who many people say is arguably the best fly-half in the world at the moment.
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“He has a very varied kicking game and a really attacking kicking game and we have to be very sharp to make sure that space is covered because he can find it.”
Asked about England’s poor recent record in the fixture, Borthwick, whose reign began with a 29-23 defeat to Scotland in 2023, said: “Everyone is aware of it but this is a different group.
“This is a very different team to the one that played at Murrayfield (last year, a 30–21 loss). Nobody can change history but what we can do is concentrate on the present. That’s what we continue to do.”
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