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England face Six Nations Grand Slam-chasing Ireland in Dublin on Saturday; Steve Borthwick’s side look to bounce back from their 53-10 humiliation of France at Twickenham; Ollie Lawrence was unavailable against Ireland after the center suffered a hamstring injury in the loss to France
According to PA Sport
Last updated: 13/03/23 10:42
Marcus Smith returned to the England lineup at fly-half for a 53-10 hammering at home to France
Marcus Smith has demanded that England “stand up and fight” in their final Six Nations clash against Grand-Slam chasing Ireland in Dublin on Saturday.
Smith described the St Patrick’s Day match at the Aviva Stadium as a “free swing”, as nobody gave England a chance to falter after their 53-10 loss to France at Twickenham. weekend.
Another defeat against Ireland on Saturday will see England finish with just two wins for a third consecutive Six Nations campaign, but Smith insists his side will fight.
Ollie Lawrence picked up a hamstring injury against France on Saturday
“We are in a difficult time at the minute and it is perfect for us,” the Harlequins fly-half said.
“We have to be faster because the challenge is no bigger than Ireland in Dublin.
“There is only one way now, that is to stand up and fight as hard as we can and play as hard as we can for this shirt.
“We’ve talked about staying together because there’s going to be a lot of noise and a lot of pressure on us. We have to be tighter than splinters.
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Steve Borthwick has named his 36-man squad for England’s Six Nations final against Ireland as they look to bounce back from a humiliating 53-10 defeat to France.
“It’s a big test of our togetherness as a team and our resolve. There’s no better week than a free swing in Ireland.
“Time is against us, but I believe we still have time. With the character we have in the group, we can turn things around quickly.
“We have a week now to correct some mistakes and we need to quickly get on the same page.”
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England head coach Steve Borthwick tried to stay positive after the heavy defeat by France
France collected seven tries as they beat England at Twickenham, inflicting the tournament’s heaviest defeat since its inception in 1882.
“We did not build up in the week to lose like that,” said Smith, whose return in the fly-half quickly became a nightmare when England were pulverized in the contact area.
“We will look at individual performance and team performance because, where we want to go in the next six months and next year, this is not enough.
“We will work hard this week to get better, but this is a good indicator of this journey.”
Ollie Lawrence has been ruled out of the climax to the Six Nations with a hamstring injury, putting Manu Tuilagi in the frame to fill the void in central midfield.
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