England open the second phase of the inaugural Nations Championship when they host Australia at Allianz Stadium on Sunday in the first of three Tests before finals weekend on November 27-29.
Here we look at five talking points heading into the autumn opener.
Playing for Borthwick
Steve Borthwick is back under the spotlight and his senior players have vowed that England will prove their support for their head coach on the pitch. A report claims there was unrest in the squad during the July tour because of Borthwick’s methods, driving players to seek showdown talks with him and Rugby Football Union chief executive Bill Sweeney. England vice captain Jamie George was indignant at the accusations, declaring “when someone comes at one of our own, we are going to fight to protect them”.
Big autumn needed
Whether Borthwick has the confidence of his squad or not, there is no doubt England have underperformed in 2026 after winning just three of their eight Tests, including their worst Six Nations in history. Sweeney on Wednesday gave Borthwick unequivocal backing to see out his contract, which takes him beyond next year’s World Cup and into 2028, but a strong autumn against Australia, Japan, New Zealand and on finals weekend is needed to restore faith in his regime.
‘Pom Squad’ reunited
The return of props Fin Baxter and Will Stuart after lengthy spells out with injury enables England to revisit a ploy that served them well during their 12-Test winning run in 2025 – packing the bench with power in their own version of South Africa’s ‘Bomb Squad’. Baxter starts so Ellis Genge is included among a set of heavyweight replacements that also features Stuart, Luke Cowan-Dickie and George Martin. Henry Pollock and Marcus Smith, meanwhile, provide X-factor.
Furbank returns
England will be keeping everything crossed that one of their most gifted players has exhausted his supply of bad luck. George Furbank is poised to make his first Test appearance since 2024 after repeated broken arms, calf issues, concussion and appendicitis robbed him of two years of his Test career. The Harlequins full-back brings an extra dimension to England’s attack and will act as a second playmaker to his former Northampton team-mate Fin Smith.
Countdown to Sydney
The Wallabies are first up at Twickenham this month and it is a fixture of heightened significance given the rivals are projected to meet in the World Cup quarter-finals in Sydney on October 31. England will be desperate to gain an edge heading into that match and they must do so against inconsistent opposition, who pose a major threat at the breakdown spearheaded by Fraser McReight and can counter-attack from anywhere. And in former Exeter star Len Ikitau, they have an elite centre who is well known on these shores.