England run riot in Liverpool to end losing run
England tore into Fiji at the Hill Dickinson Stadium, scoring eleven tries in a 73-8 win that ended a five-Test losing streak. It was a much-needed afternoon for a side that had lost their opener 45-21 to South Africa a week earlier, and the manner of it will have pleased Steve Borthwick almost as much as the scoreline.
Fiji, by contrast, are still without a point after two rounds and sit bottom of the southern group with a points difference of minus 80. This was billed as a home fixture, but the game was played on Merseyside.
England out of the blocks
England did not wait around. Marcus Smith was over inside five minutes and Fin Smith converted, the first of nine successful kicks on a flawless day from the tee. Caleb Muntz nudged Fiji onto the board with a penalty on 12 minutes, but that was as close as the hosts got. Jamie George crashed over two minutes later and the visitors were already pulling clear.
The pattern was set early. England kept the ball moving, found space out wide and made Fiji chase. Guy Pepper added a try on 27 minutes, and when Benhard Janse van Rensburg and Seb Atkinson both scored inside the final six minutes of the half, England went in 35-3 ahead. A yellow card for Levani Botia on 26 minutes only added to Fiji's problems.
The game slips away before the break
Whatever slim hope Fiji held onto at half-time disappeared before the interval was fully complete. Scrum-half Simione Kuruvoli was shown a red card in first-half stoppage time, leaving Fiji a man down for the entire second half. Tevita Ikanivere did at least give Fiji something to cheer with a try on 47 minutes, but it was a rare bright spot in a one-way contest.
From there England simply added tries as they pleased. Immanuel Feyi-Waboso and Henry Slade both crossed, and the bench changed nothing about the tempo.
Pollock leads the bench charge
If England's afternoon had a headline act, it was Henry Pollock. On as a second-half replacement, the flanker finished with a hat-trick, scoring on 54, 67 and 79 minutes. His numbers tell the story of a replacement who chased everything: 49 metres from just three carries, a clean break and three defenders beaten. When a team is already well clear, that kind of energy off the bench is hard to live with.
He was not alone. Immanuel Feyi-Waboso was the standout in open play, making 107 metres from 11 carries, beating nine defenders and making two clean breaks. Ben Earl did the hard yards through the middle with 13 carries for 46 metres, and Marcus Smith chipped in with 54 metres and three defenders beaten from full-back. Fin Smith's 18 points from the tee kept the scoreboard moving without fuss.
- Henry Pollock – 3 tries, 49 metres, 1 clean break, 3 defenders beaten
- Immanuel Feyi-Waboso – 1 try, 107 metres, 9 defenders beaten, 2 clean breaks
- Fin Smith – 18 points, 9 from 9 conversions
- Ben Earl – 13 carries, 46 metres
A long afternoon for Fiji
There is no hiding a 65-point defeat, and the red card made a hard task even harder. But Fiji's problems ran deeper than being a man down. They conceded 11 penalties to England's six, coughed up 19 turnovers and could not build the phases needed to trouble a settled defence. Playing what was officially a home fixture away from Suva will not have helped either.
There were flickers. Jiuta Wainiqolo beat seven defenders on the wing, and Kalaveti Ravouvou made 46 metres from only four carries, showing the carrying threat is still there when Fiji get front-foot ball. Ikanivere's try and his work at the lineout were positives up front. The trouble was that these moments came in isolation, and England punished almost every error at the other end.
What it means
The win moves England up to fourth in the North table on five points and gives Borthwick's team a lift after a bruising start against South Africa. A result of this size also gives their points difference a significant push.
England next face Argentina, while Fiji meet Scotland. On this evidence, England found some much-needed fluency; Fiji, still searching for a first point, have plenty to work on before their next outing.