England beat Australia at Allianz Stadium to back Steve Borthwick
England beat Australia at Allianz Stadium on Sunday, scoring seven tries to provide emphatic on-pitch backing for head coach Steve Borthwick. Henry Pollock came off the bench to play on the wing in place of injured Immanuel Feyi-Waboso and finished with a two-try cameo.
The match arrived after a build-up dominated by questions over England’s form, which the article says had been poor for most of 2026, and reports of a rift between players and coaches during the summer. Senior players angrily insisted on Friday that the squad and staff remained united and that Sunday’s performance would demonstrate that unity. There are stiffer Tests to come, with New Zealand arriving in a fortnight.
An early Feyi-Waboso try in the second minute was ruled out for a forward pass from Ben Curry to Ollie Chessum in a previous phase, despite a lively sequence that began with Ben Earl and included handling from Seb Atkinson and Fin Smith. Feyi-Waboso left the field at half-time but finished as the match’s leading metre-maker with 113 metres from eight carries. England had shown early intensity and invention in their attack.
On eight minutes Australia’s indiscipline provided the platform for England’s first score: after an obstruction while England chased a kick, Smith put his forwards into the corner and a driven maul reached the line with Jamie George held on for the try. Feyi-Waboso’s break subsequently created space for Chessum to touch down following miss passes from Henry Slade and George Furbank. Australia prop Angus Bell was yellow-carded for a hip-drop tackle on Feyi-Waboso and Joe Heyes finished from a driven maul to leave England 19-3 before half-time.
Max Jorgensen’s interception on the stroke of half-time — picking off Jack van Poortvliet’s pass and racing under the posts — reduced the margin and recalled the teams’ meeting in 2024. Feyi-Waboso did not return after the break, and Pollock was introduced off the bench to cover the wing in the absence of back-three replacements. In the final play before Bell’s return from the sin bin, Van Poortvliet finished a move fashioned by Furbank’s incision and Freeman’s inside pass to restore England’s cushion.
Pollock then extended England’s lead with a quick double: his first came from snatching a loose ball and running to the line, his second from rounding off a move involving Smith, Freeman and Furbank. At that stage Australia were 38-10 down and, the report notes, appeared set to suffer a margin greater than the 24 points they lost by in 2017 and 2019. Tries from Filipo Daugunu and Jeremy Williams in the final 20 minutes reduced the deficit.
Ben Spencer finished the game with an intercept and dive that delivered his first Test try to round off the victory. The match report records concerns for England over Atkinson, who left with a painful-looking leg injury, and Feyi-Waboso, who emerged at full-time in a protective boot; Australia boss Les Kiss was visibly angry in the coaches’ box and, the article adds, with a home Rugby World Cup to come in less than a year he has plenty of work to do. Tries: George, Chessum, Heyes, Van Poortvliet, Pollock (2), Spencer; Cons: F Smith (5). Tries: Jorgensen, Daugunu, Williams; Cons: Lonergan, Donaldson; Pens: Lonergan. England: Furbank; Freeman, Slade, Atkinson, Feyi-Waboso; F Smith, van Poortvliet; Baxter, George, Heyes, Itoje, Coles, Chessum, B Curry, Earl. Replacements: Cowan-Dickie, Genge, Stuart, Martin, Fisilau, Pollock, Spencer, M Smith. Australia: Wright; Jorgensen, Suaalii, Henry, Ikitau; Meredith, Lonergan; Bell, Pollard, Alaalatoa, Canham, Salakaia-Loto, Williams, McReight, Wilson. Replacements: Nasser, Kailea, Tupou, Valetini, Tizzano, McDermott, Donaldson, Daugunu. Assistant referees: Nika Amashukeli (Georgia) and Jeremy Rozier (France); TMO: Tual Trainini (France); FPRO: Matteo Liperini (France).
Borthwick can now advance into the autumn fixtures in a position of considerably more comfort, with New Zealand arriving in a fortnight.