DAN BIGGAR: England clearly have a problem towards Scotland however there isn’t any must panic. Here’s how they’ll put it proper towards Ireland and why Henry Pollock is vital

England had a very, very poor day at the office in Scotland.

Steve Borthwick‘s side made so many errors in the first 15 minutes to fall 17-0 behind and when you lose any game at Test level, you’re going to get criticism.

That has happened to England this week. Borthwick and his players will understand why, but there’s no way England will change their strategy for Ireland just because they’ve lost one game. And nor should they either.

There’s a reason why England won 12 games in a row prior to arriving in Edinburgh. They did so with a very specific game plan that had kicking at its heart. That can’t all of a sudden just be forgotten on the basis of a bad 80 minutes.

Under Borthwick, England have evolved their attacking approach but at the heart of their success over the past year has been the strength of their forwards, the kicking and game management of George Ford at No 10 and the impact of their powerful bench.

In Edinburgh, they just didn’t perform and there were many things wrong with England last weekend.

Henry Arundell’s two yellow cards and subsequent red meant Borthwick’s side played with 14 men for 30 minutes. The impact of that cannot be underestimated.

Losing a back three player was the worst thing that could have happened to England against a team like Scotland. That’s because not only do Gregor Townsend’s side play to width a lot, but England also use their wingers heavily to chase kicks. Without Arundell, England were always going to struggle.

Their slow start also meant they had to chase the game. England aren’t a team suited to coming from behind. They play their best rugby when they get out in front and put pressure on their opposition, strangling them out of the game with Ford’s boot.

Going 17-0 down meant they had to abandon their usual tempo and go for broke and that’s something that isn’t a strength of theirs. England’s discipline was poor and they also made uncharacteristic errors, such as regularly spilling the ball in contact. Their big players simply didn’t turn up.

For me, England’s issue against Scotland was 100 per cent psychological and not tactical. It is quite clear they have a mental barrier against Townsend’s men.

The reason England’s kicking game didn’t work last weekend was not because their tactics were wrong. They just executed poorly.

The kicking of Alex Mitchell and Ford wasn’t as accurate as normal. They kicked too far and didn’t give England a chance to compete, and when England did, they didn’t win the ball in the air or the scraps on the floor. 

Freddie Steward and Tom Roebuck are normally excellent in this area, but they were totally outplayed by Kyle Steyn and Jamie Dobie, the Scottish wingers who ruled the skies. And without Arundell, England were also light of a chaser.

By contrast, Scotland half-backs Ben White and Finn Russell were outstanding. White’s tactical box kicking was on the money every single time, in the way that he gave his team-mates the chance to compete for the ball aerially.

If England all of a sudden lose three or four games on the spin, then it will be right to question their tactical approach. But it is way, way too soon for that to happen.

I am a little bit surprised Roebuck has been dropped completely. I thought he would stay in the team ahead of Arundell for his kick chasing. I was also shocked Arundell didn’t get a ban for his sending off. I thought the way he took out Steyn in the air was clumsy and dangerous and probably deserved a week’s suspension.

I’ve read in some quarters this week that England need to do more than just kick. I think that’s unfair for two reasons.

Firstly, England aren’t a one-trick pony anyway. Secondly, kicking had been key to their unbeaten run prior to Scotland. In their four-match autumn campaign, they scored 38 points directly from kicks. I really like the look of the England team for Ireland.

Bringing in the energy of Henry Pollock, Tom Curry and Ollie Lawrence should help them eradicate last weekend’s slow start. Lawrence brings power to the midfield and I like him at outside centre and Tommy Freeman on the wing. My opinion is they are England’s best players in those positions.

Steward, Freeman and Arundell will compete hard on Ford’s kicks and Pollock and Ben Earl will look to pick up the loose balls. From there, England can attack with pace.

No team should apologise for what they’re good at. In my time with Wales, we had a lot of success by playing a certain way – using the powerful backs we had.

I remember a Six Nations victory over France in 2016. We were the dominant team and won 19-10. George North scored a try and I kicked the goals. The coaches were over the moon because we’d executed the game plan perfectly, but I woke up to headlines the next morning saying Wales should be playing more attacking rugby.

You understand questions being raised when you lose, but not when you win and England must stick to their guns. Borthwick’s team is not only packed with quality, but I think it is very likeable too. I’ve sensed a real connection between this England side and their fans and that shouldn’t be undone on the basis of one poor game.

England have a great home record and I fully expect them to return to winning aways against Ireland and put themselves back in title contention.

A final word for Maro Itoje, the England captain who will win his 100th cap this weekend. I played against Maro a lot but also went on two Lions tours with him in 2017 and 2021. He’s been an iconic player for England and is fully deserving of reaching a momentous milestone.

I expect him to be a lot happier this Saturday night than he was last!

Why Wales should raise the roof in Cardiff… 

Wales face Scotland on Saturday on the back of two heavy defeats by England and France.

Throughout my career, the Principality Stadium roof was always a big talking point ahead of Six Nations matches. Warren Gatland always wanted it shut and the Welsh Rugby Union has now agreed with that will be the case for all Championship matches in Cardiff.

Previously, both sides had to agree and if the opposition wanted it open, that was what would happen. I know Wales and the WRU think having the roof closed creates a brilliant atmosphere and there’s no doubt that’s true.

But I think Steve Tandy’s side need to box clever with the roof. The agreement the WRU has made with the Six Nations means it is unlikely to happen, but if I were Wales I would open the roof for the Scotland game. Rain is forecast throughout this week in Cardiff and on Saturday, as usual in Wales! My view is that at a time when the national side is struggling, Wales need to help themselves.

Scotland showed in their defeat in Italy that they struggled badly in the wet. Plus, they are preparing for Wales in sunny Spain!

Against both Italy and England, their scrum was in reverse.

I’m not saying Wales are definitely going to beat Scotland in a wet weather game, but I definitely think it would improve their chances of being competitive. If I was in the Wales camp this week, I’d certainly be asking the coaches and the WRU to consider it.

France and Scotland are both fantastic ball-playing teams, so why give them perfect conditions to help them?

It’s Wales’ stadium, so they should be able to do what they like. Forget half-time entertainment and light shows, the first priority should be sporting performance. And if an open roof and wet weather can help Wales, that’s the route the WRU should go down.

In their next four games Wales play Scotland, Ireland, Italy and Fiji – countries more on their level than England and France. Let’s only judge Wales after that run of fixtures.

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