Yahoo News Writers and readers pick England 23s to face Ireland: whose do you prefer?
England come into their final Six Nations off the back of a record home defeat against France. Steve Borthwick named his 36-man training squad on Monday, but our writers have whittled that down to their squads and starting XVs for a game against Grand Slam, Triple Crown and championship-chasing Ireland.
Charlie Morgan
Rock, meet Hard Place. Frankly, the best way for England to emerge from Dublin with respectability is to scrap, squeeze and spoil and stall Ireland’s procession to a Grand Slam. A heavy pack, with Maro Itoje or Ollie Chessum in the back row, is one way to stifle their hosts. Henry Slade is fortunate to retain his place but Manu Tuilagi should be at inside centre – at least for the start of the game.
Ben Coles
Tricky trying to freshen up a side after such a hammering without completely dismantling everything. That being said, it feels a little rash rushing Manu Tuilagi and Jonny Hill into the starting line-up having previously ignored them, not forgetting either that Tuilagi hasn't played since mid-February.
Marchant for Lawrence is relatively straightforward but really this is about the pack after England were played off the park by France. Cole, Ribbans, Curry and Earl all come in with an extra lock (Chessum) on the blindside for more bulk. Ben Curry deserves another go too, although it feels England are missing a trick not looking at London Irish's Tom Pearson. A six-two split could open England up to more disruption in the backline but there are enough versatile players there to cover multiple positions.
Charles Richardson
A free hit? Not quite, but after that French defeat, few are expecting England to upset the apple cart this weekend. That presents an opportunity for Steve Borthwick's side. Given what we have seen from them over the past four weeks, the chances of them travelling to Dublin, for a rainy evening fixture, and playing champagne rugby to defeat the Grand Slam hopefuls is unrealistic.
Therefore, a conservative - more boring, if you will - game plan should be employed to, if nothing else, give themselves a chance of a dull, Dublin victory. Joe Marchant is England's best defensive outside centre and George Ford returns inside him to (theoretically) tactically kick Ireland into a stupor.
Up front, Maro Itoje moves to six to accommodate the mauling, line-out mongrel of Jonny Hill, while Lewis Ludlam slides across to No 8 in place of Alex Dombrandt, who was brutally exposed against France.
Fiona Tomas
After the car crash against France and the subsequent soul-searching that will have followed this is a damage limitation exercise for England. But amid the gloom, there are reasons to be cheerful. An enforced midfield reshuffle means Manu Tuilagi can mitigate some of England’s power deficit.
Alex Mitchell at least brought some energy against the French, so Jack van Poortvliet is demoted. Owen Farrell resumes the reins at fly-half, while the sole change to a pack that needs time sees Nick Isiekwe start in place of out-of-sorts Maro Itoje. Alex Dombrandt is spared, largely in part to England’s alarming lack of depth at No 8.
Oliver Brown
While the signs are that Steve Borthwick will keep faith with those who toiled at Twickenham, he needs, in all honesty, to be brutal. He does not have the luxury of ordering a mass reshuffle, especially among the forwards, but the most glaring under-performers against France need to be shelved. Jack van Poortvliet? Nowhere near good enough last Saturday, with Northampton's Alex Mitchell primed to usurp him. Henry Slade? Anonymous yet again, leaving Manu Tuilagi as the only realistic option at 13 if the clash in Dublin becomes a battle of brawn.
There is a case, too, for leaving Maro Itoje on the bench, given how thoroughly he was eclipsed by opposite number Thibaud Flament. But a shift to the back row could revitalise him. Fly-half is an all but impossible call: after distinctly underwhelming tournaments for Marcus Smith and Owen Farrell, what do England have to lose by throwing in George Ford?
Tom Cary
Feels harsh to drop Smith after one game in which England were obliterated up front but if the question is whether England are more likely to eke out a win in Dublin with Farrell or Smith in the starting XV, you would have to say the former. With Tuilagi and Slade outside him, it would be the same midfield England employed when they won at the Aviva in 2019. Perhaps they can rekindle that magic.
Mind you, whoever starts in the backs will have no chance unless England’s forwards turn up. Maro Itoje badly needs a big game to remind the world of his qualities. The same goes for all of them. They all need to play out of their skins and even then they are unlikely to get anything out of the game but some self-respect.
Telegraph Sport reader teams
Mick Clark
1. Genge, 2. Dunn, 3. Collier, 4. Hill, 5. Ribbans, 6, Chessum, 7. Earl, 8. Ludlam, 9. Mitchell, 10. Ford, 11. Freeman 12. Tuilagi, 13. Marchant, 14. Arundell, 15. Watson.
Paddy Gourlay
1. Genge, 2 George, 3. Sinckler, 4. Itoje, 5. Hill, 6. Ben Curry, 7. Willis, 8. Dombrandt, 9. Mitchell, 10. Smith, 11. Arundell, 12. Slade, 13. Marchant, 14. Steward, 15. Watson.
Christopher McKenna
1. Genge, 2. George, 3. Sinkler, 4. Itoje, 5. Ribbans, 6. Chessum, 7. Willis, 8. Ludlam, 9. Mitchell, 10. Smith, 11. Watson/Murley, 12. Farrell, 13. Tuilagi, 14. Arundell, 15. Steward.
