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It is a interesting aspect of England's November perfect record that no new players earned their international debut throughout the recent campaign, a scenario not seen in a quarter of a century. Yet, the performance of Max Ojomoh showing against Argentina while earning his second appearance seemed to be the breakthrough of a major talent.

Star Display in Hard-Fought Victory

He proved to be the key player in what was England's least convincing performance of the November series. He finished off the opening touchdown before creating the other two. His assist for his teammate via a exquisite cross-field kick was the champagne moment of the opening period. Similarly, his quick offload to the center for England's third try was equally eye-catching, concluding a excellent debut performance at Twickenham for the 25-year-old.

Ojomoh possesses the sort of triple threat that all coaches would want from their inside-centre. He can run, kick and pass, and he has appeared at number ten and at both centre positions for his club this season.

Quick Rise and Upcoming Prospects

Only a little over a week since the head coach could have believed he had finally unearthed his centre partnership for the long term. However, the highest praise that can be paid to Ojomoh is that Borthwick may have to think again. He was initially selected to an England squad four years ago, but had to bide his time until the last game of the overseas trip to make his debut. Fitness issues to other players paved the way for Ojomoh to start here, and he undoubtedly will be in consideration for a third cap when the squad regroup to begin their championship quest in the new year.

• Versatile Skillset: Can play fly-half and midfield.
• Key Contributions: Scored one try and set up two more.
• Important Performance: Stepped up when teammates were unavailable.

Squad Context and Wider Significance

How would the team have been against their opponents without Ojomoh? Certainly they rode their luck and perhaps it is no coincidence that he was their best player. The team experienced an natural decline in intensity following a major win over New Zealand. Maybe Borthwick ought to have made more changes.

A balanced view is needed, however. One might be inclined to lambast the side for their failure to inject much urgency into this match, or for nearly losing a fixture they were controlling. But, this outcome completes a perfect record of November matches for the first time since 2016. 2025 concludes with 11 straight wins after starting with a defeat. We are midway in the World Cup cycle and the situation look considerably rosier for Borthwick than they did at this stage.

Player Pool and Long-Term Strategy

The manager appears that, with time remaining from the global tournament, he knows the vast majority of the team he will take to Australia. Of course, there will be the odd bolter. But there are not many existing players of the squad who are not in contention for the 2027 tournament.

That represents an advantage because it posed an issue for his predecessor, who found it difficult when it was clear that certain players were not going to feature in his strategy. Borthwick seems to have taken action earlier, preventing the difficult start that plagued the team in the previous cycle.

Player rankings seem like they belong to 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 heartbreaking narrow loss. The fact they avoided that is largely due to Ojomoh, luck, and the strength of the bench. As the coach plans the route to the championship, he has wind in England's sails after an unbeaten run, and therefore we can forgive the lack of quality of the recent display.