Fin Smith tells England autumn must produce results or prompt change
Fin Smith, the England fly-half who has won 19 caps and made his debut against Italy in 2024, told Rugby Union Weekly on 17 September 2026 that a poor autumn should force “a pretty hard look at ourselves” and raise fundamental questions about the team’s direction.
Smith made the comments against the backdrop of a disappointing Six Nations and a mixed summer campaign that included a 45-21 defeat by world champions South Africa, a 73-8 win over Fiji and a 31-24 victory against Argentina. England will face Australia, Japan and New Zealand on consecutive weekends in November before a play-off against a southern hemisphere opponent to conclude the new Nations Championship competition.
Asked about the state of the squad, Smith said: "It is so hard to say. I am not going to sit here and say 'we are building' because that is what you will get every time." He added: "We will honestly find out in the autumn. If we have a pretty ropey autumn, on the back of building some momentum over the summer, I think we will need to have a pretty hard look at ourselves."
Smith highlighted the November schedule as a measuring stick, saying: "Playing New Zealand at Allianz Stadium will be a great way to test ourselves. I think on our day, in front of a big crowd and when we are up for it, we can beat anyone. The last time New Zealand came we had a great result." England beat the All Blacks 33-19 last November.
The senior England squad’s form has dipped in 2026, with only three wins from eight Tests; among the low points were a 42-21 home defeat by Ireland and a first-ever loss to Italy. Smith has started the past five Tests, establishing himself as first-choice stand-off ahead of George Ford and Marcus Smith.
On adapting to international demands, Smith said: "I have been given a fair bit of licence to put my footprint on the attack and lead a lot of meetings about how I want us to play. England are probably set up in a slightly different way. Northampton would probably be slightly more attacking and set up with maybe a slightly lighter-weight forward pack that might be suited to the style of play there. England is a little bit more set-piece and arm wrestle and tactical, so I have to adapt my game to suit that as well. But most of the time I am just going out there to just play what I see."
Northampton director of rugby Phil Dowson, 44, reflected on his club’s recent success and his own ambitions, noting he has led Saints to two Premiership titles and the 2025 Champions Cup final and that Northampton supplied six players to England's Nations Championship squad this summer. Dowson said: "Fundamentally, we are having a great time at Northampton. From a personal point of view, at some point, we'd like to coach international rugby because it is different. There's no timeline on that. That's not just England. It is just the opportunity to go and do something different to test ourselves - either as a team or individually - under different pressure and to have new experiences." He also confirmed there has been no contact from the Rugby Football Union about preparing him for an England role and noted he prepared a developmental England XV's forwards for a fixture against the Barbarians in May 2019 but has not been brought into the fold since.
Sam Vesty was seconded as attack coach for England A's 91-5 rout of Portugal in February 2024 and previously served as skills coach under Eddie Jones for England's 2017 summer tour to Argentina; both he and Dowson signed new contract extensions with Northampton in December.
England’s three autumn Tests against Australia, Japan and New Zealand, followed by the Nations Championship play-off against a southern hemisphere opponent, will provide the fixtures Smith identified as the decisive period for determining whether the squad’s recent momentum can be sustained or if more significant changes are required.