Steve Borthwick asks for England fans’ roar in support of returning Maro Itoje

Steve Borthwick has called on England supporters to give Maro Itoje “the roar he deserves” when he comes off the bench in his side’s Six Nations opener against Wales on Saturday.

Borthwick has taken the decision to omit Itoje from the starting lineup after his captain missed the start of England’s training camp in Girona to attend his mother’s funeral in Nigeria. Jamie George assumes the role he was stripped of when Itoje was handed the captaincy 12 months ago while Borthwick has handed a first start since the 2023 World Cup to the in-form winger Henry Arundell and selected Tommy Freeman at outside centre.

Itoje has played every minute of England’s last six Six Nations campaigns and has been used as a replacement only three previous times in his 97 appearances. His record in the Six Nations is all the more remarkable and the only previous time he has been used as a replacement was on his debut in 2016, going on to start 44 of the next 48 matches after missing four in 2019 due to injury.

“I”m sure he’s going to have incredible impact off the bench and I’m sure that the crowd at Allianz Stadium will give him the roar he deserves when he comes to the touchline ready to come on the pitch and show just how much they care about him and his family,” said Borthwick.

“Maro and his family have been dealing with an incredible loss, the sad loss of his mum [Florence]. We all feel for him in that regard, he travelled to Nigeria and back and has had a big load from a travel perspective. So I’ve made the decision that he’s going to be on the bench this week.”

Itoje was last used as a replacement in the autumn victory over Fiji last November, when Ellis Genge stood in as captain. Genge has been selected as vice-captain for Saturday along with George Ford, who shared the captaincy with George on last summer’s tour of Argentina. George attended the Six Nations launch in Itoje’s place and spoke of the “scary parallels” after he also lost his mother during the 2024 championship. It is understood Itoje will assume the captaincy upon his introduction.

“There is a connection and tightness around this squad that I have not seen in very many England squads and certainly was not apparent in the England squads that I was part of in the later years of my playing career,” added Itoje. “You never want people to go through these situations and you want to offer as much support as you possibly can. That’s what the players and the whole management team do for one and other, which I am really proud of them, for the way they go about that.”

Arundell’s selection on the wing is eye-catching and is further explained because Tom Roebuck, who has been nursing a toe injury since the autumn, is deemed to be “a few days away” from full fitness. Arundell’s last England start came against Argentina in the World Cup bronze medal match but he made an eye-catching cameo against Fiji in November, scoring a scintillating try. The 23-year-old has been revitalised by his move to Bath after two trying seasons at Racing 92 and demonstrated his aerial improvements in a fine showing when up against Saracens’ Noah Caluori earlier this season.

“He’s been through a number of experiences, and his game has become much more rounded,” said Borthwick. “He’s always had that incredible point of difference around his carry and pace, and I think that X-Factor if anything now is even stronger. He’s even quicker than he was then. He’s added an offload game to his carry game. He’s improved defensively in the air, and that’s a great credit to him as he’s gone away and worked hard on his game.”

With Borthwick opting against handing Henry Pollock a first start, England’s bench is again loaded with five British & Irish Lions in a 6-2 split. England’s replacements emerged as a significant weapon during the autumn in which they extended their winning run to 11 matches and while Borthwick has been forced to deploy Bevan Rodd and Trevor Davison on the bench due to front-row injuries, the head coach is expected to again unleash his “Pom Squad” against a Wales side who have lost their last 11 Six Nations matches. “There are great benefits to bringing players on en masse, that helps from an understanding point of view,” he added. “I would love there to be players all coming on together but I know the game demands other things.”