'Collapse down to overconfidence'

EDDIE Jones believes England’s dramatic collapse in the Guinness Six Nations can be explained by Steve Borthwick’s overconfidence in looking ahead to a title decider against France before the tournament had begun.

- By DUNCAN BECH

Steve Borthwick (left) and Eddie Jones Andrew Matthews/PA

(Andrew Matthews/PA)

Successive emphatic defeats to Scotland and Ireland have undone the progress made during a 12-Test winning run and turned the round-four appointment against Italy in Rome on March 7 into a game they dare not lose.

It is a very different scenario to the one Borthwick had envisioned when naming his Six Nations squad last month.

“On March 14 in Paris, we want to be in a position entering that game where we can achieve what we're all aiming to achieve,” the head coach said on January 23.