Fall of England: how yesterday’s crowing rooster can rapidly become tomorrow’s feather duster

After successive defeats to Scotland and Ireland, Steve Borthwick’s project is inevitably under scrutiny

FRUSTRATED: England's Henry Pollock. It is fair to say that two weeks ago the management didn’t see this vertical descent coming. Pic: Shaun Botterill/Getty Images

THE band on the stadium concourse were playing a familiar tune in the immediate aftermath of England’s latest debacle on Saturday. “Zombie! Zombie!” the vocalist sang, ostensibly in tribute to Ireland’s record 42-21 victory at Twickenham. Alternatively he might just have been riffing on the horribly listless, blank-eyed performance that ended England’s Six Nations title hopes for another year.

“In your he-ad, in your he-ad…” The old Cranberries anthem, synonymous with Ireland’s 2023 World Cup campaign in France, will be heard a few more times over the next month if Andy Farrell’s team maintain their revitalised excellence and no-nonsense physical intent. For England’s players, though, the past two weekends have been truly grim, a return to the bad old days they had dared to hope were over.