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This marks a interesting feature of the English team's November clean sweep that no new players made their international debut during the recent campaign, a scenario not seen in a quarter of a century. Yet, the performance of Max Ojomoh display against Argentina while securing his second appearance seemed to be the breakthrough of a future star.

Star Display in Tight Victory

Ojomoh was the star turn in what was England's most challenging performance of the autumn. He scored the first try before setting up the other two. The setup for his teammate via a delightful long pass was the highlight play of the opening period. Similarly, his popped pass to Henry Slade for England's final score was just as eye-catching, capping off a fine first outing at the home stadium for the 25-year-old.

Ojomoh possesses the kind of versatile skillset that every manager desire from their inside-centre. He can run, kick and pass, and he has appeared at fly-half and at both centre positions for Bath this campaign.

Quick Ascent and Upcoming Prospects

Only eight days since the head coach could have believed he had finally unearthed his centre partnership for the future. However, the highest praise that can be paid to the young star is that the coach may have to reconsider. He was initially selected to an national team previously, but had to bide his time until the last game of the overseas trip to make his debut. Injuries to teammates created the opportunity for Ojomoh to begin here, and he undoubtedly will be in contention for a third cap when England regroup to start their championship quest in the coming months.

• Versatile Skillset: Can play number ten and centre.
• Key Contributions: Scored one try and set up two more.
• Timely Impact: Delivered when teammates were injured.

Team Context and Wider Implications

Where might England have fared against Argentina without him? Certainly they had some fortune and perhaps it is no coincidence that he was their best player. England experienced an natural decline in intensity following a major win over the All Blacks. Perhaps the coach should have made more changes.

A balanced view is required, however. It is tempting to criticize England for their failure to inject much urgency into this match, or for almost throwing away a fixture they were dominating. But, this outcome completes a clean sweep of four autumn fixtures for the first time since recent years. 2025 ends with eleven consecutive victories after starting with a defeat. The team is halfway through the four-year tournament plan and the situation look considerably rosier for the coach than they did previously.

Squad Depth and Long-Term Strategy

The manager gives the impression that, with time remaining from the World Cup, he knows the vast majority of the squad he will bring to Australia. Of course, there will be the surprise inclusion. Yet there are very few current members of the roster who are not on track for the 2027 tournament.

This is an benefit because it posed an issue for his preceding coach, who struggled when it was clear that certain players were not going to feature in his plans. Borthwick seems to have taken action sooner, preventing the difficult start that plagued the squad in the past.

Player rankings sound like they are for sailors of yesteryear, but managers swear by them and Borthwick can be happy with his. Under different circumstances, the team might be nursing their wounds after a gut-wrenching narrow loss. The fact they avoided that owes plenty to Ojomoh, fortune, and the quality of the bench. While Borthwick plots a course to the championship, he has positive momentum after an unbeaten run, and as a result we can overlook the lack of quality of the recent display.