🔗 Share this article

It is a curious aspect of the English team's autumn clean sweep that there were no debutants made their international debut throughout the series of matches, a scenario not seen in a quarter of a century. Yet, the performance of Max Ojomoh display against the Argentine side while securing his second cap felt like the breakthrough of a major talent.

Standout Performance in Hard-Fought Victory

He proved to be the star turn in what was England's least convincing outing of the autumn. He finished off the first try before setting up the remaining two. His assist for Immanuel Feyi-Waboso via a delightful cross-field kick was the champagne moment of the opening period. Likewise, his quick offload to the center for England's third try was equally eye-catching, concluding a excellent first outing at Twickenham for the 25-year-old.

Ojomoh possesses the kind of triple threat that every manager would want from their inside-centre. His abilities include running, kicking, and passing, and he has featured at fly-half and at multiple midfield roles for his club this season.

Quick Ascent and Future Prospects

Only eight days since Steve Borthwick might have felt he had discovered his midfield duo for the future. However, the highest praise that can be paid to the young star is that the coach may have to think again. Ojomoh was first called up to an England squad four years ago, but had to bide his time until the last game of the overseas trip to earn his first cap. Fitness issues to other players created the opportunity for Ojomoh to start here, and he undoubtedly will be in consideration for a third cap when the squad regroup to start their championship campaign in the coming months.

• Multiple Abilities: Can play fly-half and centre.
• Key Contributions: Scored one try and assisted two.
• Important Performance: Stepped up when others were injured.

Team Background and Broader Implications

How would the team have been against Argentina without him? Undoubtedly they rode their luck and perhaps it is not surprising that he was their standout performer. The team experienced an inevitable drop-off in intensity following a major win over New Zealand. Perhaps the coach should have freshened things up.

Some perspective is needed, however. One might be inclined to criticize the side for their failure to bring much intensity into this match, or for almost throwing away a fixture they were dominating. However, this result completes a clean sweep of four autumn fixtures for the first time since recent years. 2025 concludes with eleven consecutive victories after beginning with a defeat. We are halfway through the four-year tournament plan and things look considerably rosier for Borthwick than they did at this stage.

Squad Depth and Future Planning

Borthwick appears that, two years out from the global tournament, he knows the vast majority of the team he will bring to Australia. Of course, there will be the surprise inclusion. Yet there are very few current members of the squad who are not on track for the 2027 tournament.

This is an advantage because it posed an issue for his predecessor, who found it difficult when it was clear that certain players were not going to feature in his plans. Borthwick seems to have grasped the nettle earlier, avoiding the torrid beginning that plagued the team in the previous cycle.

Depth charts sound like they belong to sailors of yesteryear, but managers swear by them and Borthwick can be happy with his. On another day, the team might be nursing their wounds after a heartbreaking narrow loss. That they were not is largely due to the young star, luck, and the strength of England's substitutes. While the coach plots a course to the championship, he has positive momentum after an unbeaten run, and therefore we can forgive the lack of quality of this performance.