MIKE BROWN: Marcus Smith showed he can overcome his England snub

MIKE BROWN: Marcus Smith showed he can overcome his England snub with a superb Man of the Match performance for Harlequins… but for as long as Steve Borthwick is in charge he’s going to have to get used to a role on the bench

  • Marcus Smith is going to have to get used to a spot on England’s bench
  • The 24-year-old was left out of the Six Nations clash with France on Saturday
  • But Smith reacted well with a superb performance for Harlequins against Exeter
  • If Scott Robertson got the England job he would’ve been much more involved

I exchanged a few messages with Marcus Smith last week, checking in with him because I know how it feels when selection doesn’t go your way. He’s an ultra-competitive guy and he wants to be starting for England, but the reality is that he’s probably going to have to get used to a role on the bench for now.

With the journey England are on at the moment, Owen Farrell and George Ford are better suited to the style of play. Steve Borthwick is building his game plan around set piece, kicking and doing the basics really well and that won’t change much between now and the World Cup. It doesn’t play into the hands of Marcus’s super strength, which is his running game.

Marcus told me he was really excited for the opportunity to get back out there for Harlequins yesterday and enjoy some game time. And didn’t he just! That’s exactly the mindset you need and exactly the reaction Steve will have wanted to see.

I think he should be back on the bench against France because I don’t think his axis with Farrell works. George Ford hasn’t done enough to earn a place back in the matchday 23 and Smith offers an X factor that the other No10’s don’t.

England will need his running game at some point. It’s a good selection headache to have. You need that kind of depth if you want to be a world-beating team. Marcus will just have to bide his time before he becomes the main man. A talent like his will get opportunities but the short turnaround to the World Cup doesn’t work in his favour.

Marcus Smith will have to get used to a spot on England’s bench, despite his excellent Harlequins performance

If Scott Robertson had got the England job, I’m sure the game plan would have been built around Marcus. The RFU had the choice between two very different coaches and Steve was their guy. They knew exactly what Steve would bring, because he’s done it at Saracens and Leicester, and now it’s on Steve to show that it brings results. 

He’ll be judged on results, not style points. Some people say it’s boring. It may not be the most attractive rugby but it’s effective. They are kicking with purpose. It’s not like the end of the Eddie era when they were kicking overlaps and resorting to the boot for the sake of it.

They kicked a lot against Wales but they won the aerial battle, then the breakdown and we saw glimpses of their unstructured attack off the back of it. They’re the same fundamentals we went to when Eddie came in and I’m sure they will add extra layers over time.

Steve Borthwick has not selected Smith for England’s Six Nations clash with France on Saturday 

If Scott Robertson had been chosen over Borthwick for the England job Smith would’ve been much more involved

Eddie was probably shrewder at controlling the narrative. He would drop hand grenades in the media to take the conversation away from things like style. Maybe that’s experience but it got pretty boring by the end. Steve’s authentic and honest and he will keep doing what he does.

You’ve got to start somewhere. Would you rather run it from everywhere like Italy and lose or play like South Africa and win? I’d rather see winning rugby. Going into the France game, I hope he sticks with the same 23 to build up some consistency. Relentless tinkering isn’t productive.

There’s a good opportunity to beat France because they’re not as dominant as they were last year, but England will need to have a worldie of a game. It’s a massive step up from Wales, who I thought were really poor. My heart says England could get a memorable win but my head is saying France will edge it by three or four points.

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