Six Nations 2024: 'Brilliant England careers' front five players for the first time in Roma, says Steve Borthwick

It has been far from perfect, but a new generation of English talent is off to a successful start.

Manager Steve Borthwick brought in five new players in the win over Italy – the most new players in a single game since Stuart Lancaster's debut in 2012.

This victory at Murrayfield marked the birth of Owen Farrell's international career.

Flanker Ethan Roots was named man of the match in Rome, Chandler Cunningham-South made a tangible impact off the bench, and midfielder Fraser Dingwall helped make room for England's dangerous outside backs.

Fly-half Fin Smith and winger Immanuel Feyi-Waboso, two of the top performers in the Premier League, also enjoyed their debuts with a brief spell off the bench.

“It is a pleasure as a coach to be here starting five players who I believe will continue their fantastic career in England,” Borthwick told BBC Sport.

“Ethan, in particular, I thought was great and he's been great since coming to camp. Every interaction I've had with him has been excellent.”

The England blindside flanker gave an abrasive presentation, explaining why Exeter Chiefs recruited the 26-year-old from Ospreys following a move away from his native New Zealand.

Richard Hill, a former England World Cup-winning player and team manager, introduced Borthwick to Roots through various clips of him playing for Exeter.

According to Oval Insights, the back row has had the second highest number of appearances this season in the Premiership, indicating an ability to do the unglamorous but important tasks on the rugby pitch.

“Steve [Borthwick] “I just said, bring your point of difference and add it to the team,” Roots told ITV Sport.

“Of course, you will feel nervous on your debut, we know the Italians are passionate and will never go away, but fortunately we came away with the win.”

Cunningham South was the youngest player to make his debut at the age of 20 and made an important tackle in coverage before being pulled off the wing in the closing stages.

Harlequin joined the London club after the demise of the London Irish and showed his raw athletic ability – drawing comparisons with youngster Courtney Laws, who retired from England duty after the World Cup.

However, an outstanding performance alongside Roots' Tommy Freeman was already crowned. The free winger, who picked a fine lineout before cutting to Elliot Daly for his side's opening try, regularly came inside to give England more options in attack.

The 22-year-old was capped by Eddie Jones during England's tour of Australia in 2022, and has developed his game as part of Northampton Saints' exciting backline, led by 21-year-old Smith.

His teammate Alex Mitchell scored the try that put England ahead for the first time in the match during the second half.

“Tommy Freeman has made some breaks, he's looked really exciting,” former England fly-half Paul Grayson told BBC 5 Live. “Fraser Dingwall was calm and acted as a facilitator for others.”

The retirements of 2019 World Cup finalists Luz, Ben Young, Jonny May and Mako Vunipola, and Farrell's decision to step down, have left a huge gap of experienced campaigners.

Captain Jimmy George is still from the Class of 2019 and enjoyed seeing the young players express themselves in Rome, with no fears of challenging Ireland, who are favorites for the tournament after their thumping victory over France.

“I don't want anyone to be in this squad if they don't really believe in our ability to go and challenge the best and win this tournament,” he said.

“For us, we will learn quickly and we have to make sure we learn our lessons and be very clear about where we want to go after this game.”

England will face Wales at Twickenham next Saturday in its second match.