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Six Nations: Steve Borthwick was pleased with his first win but always looking for improvements

England head coach Steve Borthwick was pleased with how his side took a step forward in their rebuild with a Six Nations victory over Italy at Twickenham.

The win was Borthwick’s first at the helm of the Red Rose as his team beat the Azzurri 31-14. The scoreline was a lot closer towards the end of the game until youngster Henry Arundell scored in the 70th minute.

The coach was able to pick apart what England can still do better, with conceding points late on one of the key work-ons.

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Small steps

“There were some positive small steps forward. We’re trying to rebuild this team, and we’ve taken some steps forward,” Borthwick said.

“There’s plenty to improve on. We left plenty of chances out there. Our ruck speed could have been quicker. When our ruck speed went up, we stressed the defence more. When it slowed down, we didn’t.

“We conceded some opportunities late in the game and we’ll have a good look why because that’s happened for two weeks running now.

“We were in a winning position late in the game against Scotland but let it slip. We’ll have a good look at that to make sure we’re better.”

Borthwick is trying to maximise every minute on the training ground to catch up to other teams that are in the fourth year of a coaching cycle compared to the short time he has been at the helm since Eddie Jones’ departure at the end of last year.

“The games on Saturday were high quality, and those teams are in the final year of their four-year plans,” he said.

“They’ve used the four years really well, and now they’re putting the finishing touches to it.

“They know their selection, they have caps under their belts, they’re arriving at the World Cup with the right number of caps. We’re not in that situation.

“The way we train, play, and the way we approach our off-field preparation is that we’re maximising every minute. We have to.

“The players have embraced that. I’ve asked them to do something different, and they’ve embraced it.”

Plan B

Italy head coach Kieran Crowley admitted his side struggled with England’s physicality and believes the Azzurri need a better plan B.

“We always knew England would come out and be very direct,” said Crowley.

“They put us under pressure and got their driving maul going. They played as expected but we just did not handle it as well as we hoped to.

“They defended well and we were getting slow ball after slow ball. They controlled the breakdown.

“But you’ve got to have a plan B and we need to come up with a more accurate plan B.”

The Six Nations takes a break this weekend and Borthwick’s side returns on February 25 when they tackle Wales in Cardiff.