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It is a curious feature of England's autumn perfect record that there were no debutants made their international debut throughout the recent campaign, a scenario not seen in a quarter of a century. Yet, Max Ojomoh's showing against Argentina while securing his second cap felt like the breakthrough of a major talent.

Star Performance in Tight Win

He proved to be the star turn in what was the team's least convincing outing of the autumn. He finished off the opening touchdown before creating the remaining two. The setup for his teammate via a delightful long pass was the champagne moment of the opening period. Likewise, his popped pass to Henry Slade for England's final score was equally impressive, capping off a fine first outing at Twickenham for the young player.

He has the sort of triple threat that every manager would want from their inside-centre. He can run, kick and pass, and he has appeared at number ten and at multiple midfield roles for his club this season.

Rapid Rise and Upcoming Opportunities

Only a little over a week since the head coach might have felt he had discovered his midfield duo for the long term. But, the highest praise that can be paid to the young star is that the coach might need to think again. Ojomoh was first called up to an England squad four years ago, but had to bide his time until the final match of the overseas trip to make his debut. Injuries to other players paved the way for him to start here, and he undoubtedly will be in consideration for a third cap when the squad regroup to begin their championship campaign in the new year.

• Multiple Abilities: Excels at fly-half and centre.
• Key Contributions: Scored one try and set up two more.
• Timely Impact: Delivered when teammates were unavailable.

Squad Background and Broader Significance

Where might the team have been against their opponents without Ojomoh? Certainly they rode their luck and perhaps it is not surprising that he was their best player. The team showed an natural decline in intensity following a major win over the All Blacks. Perhaps Borthwick should have made more changes.

A balanced view is required, however. It is tempting to lambast the side for their failure to inject much urgency into this match, or for nearly losing a game they were dominating. However, this outcome marks a clean sweep of November matches for the first time since recent years. 2025 concludes with eleven consecutive victories after starting with a loss. We are midway in the World Cup cycle and things look considerably rosier for the coach than they did at this stage.

Player Pool and Long-Term Strategy

The manager appears that, two years out from the global tournament, he understands the vast majority of the squad he will bring to Australia. Naturally, there will be the surprise inclusion. Yet there are not many current members of the squad who are not on track for the 2027 tournament.

This is an advantage because it posed an issue for his preceding coach, 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 sooner, avoiding the torrid beginning that affected the team in the previous cycle.

Depth charts seem like they are for sailors of yesteryear, but coaches swear by them and Borthwick can be satisfied with his. Under different circumstances, England might be dealing with a loss after a gut-wrenching narrow loss. The fact they avoided that is largely due to the young star, fortune, and the quality of the bench. While Borthwick plots a course to the championship, he has positive momentum after 11 wins in a row, and as a result we can overlook the paucity of the recent display.