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It is a curious feature of England's November perfect record that no new players made their international debut during the recent campaign, a scenario not seen in 25 years. However, Max Ojomoh's display against the Argentine side while earning his second cap felt like the arrival of a future star.

Standout Display in Tight Victory

Ojomoh was the key player in what was the team's most challenging outing of the autumn. He finished off the opening touchdown before creating the remaining two. His assist for his teammate via a delightful long pass was the highlight play of the opening period. Likewise, his quick offload to the center for England's final score was equally impressive, concluding a excellent debut performance at the home stadium for the 25-year-old.

Ojomoh possesses the kind of triple threat that every manager would want from their inside-centre. He can run, kick and pass, and he has appeared at fly-half and at multiple midfield roles for Bath this campaign.

Quick Rise and Future Opportunities

Only a little over a week since the head coach might have felt he had discovered his midfield duo for the long term. However, the highest praise that can be given to the young star is that Borthwick might need to reconsider. He was initially selected to an England squad previously, but had to wait until the last game of the overseas trip to earn his first cap. Injuries to other players created the opportunity for him to begin here, and he surely will be in contention for a further appearance when England regroup to begin their championship quest in the coming months.

• Multiple Abilities: Excels at number ten and centre.
• Key Contributions: Scored one try and set up two more.
• Important Performance: Stepped up when teammates were injured.

Team Background and Broader Implications

How would the team have been against Argentina without Ojomoh? Certainly they rode their luck and perhaps it is no coincidence that he was their best player. The team showed an natural decline in energy following a significant victory over New Zealand. Perhaps Borthwick should have made more changes.

Some perspective is needed, though. One might be inclined to criticize the side for their failure to bring much urgency into this match, or for almost throwing away a fixture they were controlling. But, this result marks a clean sweep of four autumn fixtures for the initial occasion since 2016. 2025 ends with eleven consecutive victories after starting with a defeat. The team is halfway through the World Cup cycle and things look considerably rosier for Borthwick than they did at this stage.

Player Pool and Future Planning

The manager appears that, with time remaining from the World Cup, he knows the vast majority of the squad he will take to Australia. Naturally, there will be the odd bolter. Yet there are not many current members of the squad who are not in contention for the 2027 tournament.

That represents an benefit because it posed an issue for his predecessor, 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 beginning that affected the squad in the previous cycle.

Depth charts seem like they are for seafarers of the past, but coaches rely on them and Borthwick can be happy with his. Under different circumstances, the team might be dealing with a loss after a gut-wrenching late defeat. The fact they avoided that is largely due to Ojomoh, luck, and the quality of England's substitutes. 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.