England need wins after exits cast shadow of uncertainty

At first glance it was a low-key day at the stadium formerly known as Twickenham. The weather was warm for mid-October and a sleepy fox was snoozing on the porch of a temporary building in the north car park. Inside England announced a wholly predictable squad, as if Steve Borthwick was doing his best to avoid stealing any of Thomas Tuchel's thunder.

- Robert Kitson

Borthwick also politely knocked back the invitation to pass on any tips to the incoming German - "he has plenty of experience in English sport already" - beyond quoting the well-known stat about international teams with homegrown coaches doing better in major tournaments. He preferred to leave it to others to observe that across men's English cricket, football and rugby union he will soon be the solitary homegrown head honcho.

Even so, there was no avoiding the enquiries regarding his own assistant coaches. Until now Borthwick had chosen to stay silent on the abrupt summer departure of two of his sidekicks, Felix Jones and Aled Walters. Here, finally, was a chance to tell the world it was very much their loss and the pair would bitterly regret their decisions.