'Cadan Murley set for Debut' – 2025 Six Nations: England squad to face Ireland – Makers and Breakers

01/28/2025 12:19 PM

England head coach Steve Borthwick has named his squad to play Ireland, in the opening round of the 2025 Men’s Guinness Six Nations. Borthwick has followed suit in his manor of showing his hand early, with his Tuesday squad announcements continuing on the pattern he put into place this past Autumn.

England are considered to be the underdogs heading into Dublin, with the back-to-back Six Nations champions Ireland out for a history making third consecutive title. However, if there were ever a time to take on the Irish it would be now, as Ireland will be without their regular head coach Andy Farrell, who is instead set for a scouting mission as British & Irish Lions head coach. Simon Easterby takes up the mantle as interim head coach, with England eyeing the upset at the Aviva Stadium.

Find your local Greene King and settle in for the 2025 Six Nations!

The last meeting between England and Ireland was a very memorable one, with the image of Marcus Smith slotting the crucial match winning drop goal etched into recent RFU folklore. The England win at the Allianz Stadium denied Ireland their Grand Slam in the 2024 Six Nations, and Steve Borthwick’s side will be out to emulate their heroics of last year. There are plenty of talking points from Borthwick’s squad announcement, with our latest ‘makers and breakers’ article outlying 10 key decisions that have been made for England’s 2025 Six Nations opener.

MAKERS AND BREAKERS: ENGLAND SQUAD TO PLAY IRELAND – 2025 MEN’S GUINNESS SIX NATIONS

MAKERS

1. Cadan Murley (Harlequins)

There is a debutante within Steve Borthwick’s starting XV, as Harlequins wing Cadan Murley gets set for his first senior Test match as an England international. There has long been plenty of buzz around the hot-stepping Harlequin, with the wing really coming into the Test match contention back in the 2022/23 Premiership season – which he ended as the league’s top scorer with 15 tries.

Murley was around the England training camp ahead of the 2023 World Cup campaign, yet Borthwick did not award the wing with a place in the bronze medal winning side. An injury to Immanuel Feyi-Waboso opened up the door to Murley, with the Exeter Chiefs wing opting to undergo shoulder surgery and forgo any involvement within the 2025 Six Nations. Murley shone on a recent appearance for England A this past November, as he grabbed a brace of tries in the win over Australia A at the Stoop.

2. Tom Willis (Saracens)

There has been plenty of hope and expectation around Tom Willis to gain an England involvement, with the Saracen in the form of his life down at the StoneX Stadium. According to Borthwick, Willis is ‘desperate’ to build upon his England debut with an extended run in the squad, as the back row has not featured for England since his sole cap. Willis’ debut took place in a 2023 RWC warm-up match against Wales, with Borthwick releasing the number eight from his refined squad for the competition.

Willis has been in barnstorming form so far this season, with Saracens head coach Mark McCall picking him as the first choice number eight. This sees Ben Earl shifted out to the flanks in Saracens colours, and it will be interesting to see whether Borthwick does the same following Willis’ involvement from the bench. It’s great to see Borthwick double down on his mantra of picking players that are in form, with few back rows in better fettle than than of the bruising Saracens star.

3. Ben Curry (Sale Sharks)

History will be made at the Aviva Stadium for the England men’s team, as Ben Curry gets set to start on the flanks alongside his twin brother Tom. This will be the first time that twin brothers have played for England at the same time, as the only previous England twins have from the Red Roses (Emma & Jane Mitchell and Bryony & Poppy Cleall). The Curry brothers are back to batter and bruise the Irish opponents, with Ben ready for only his second Test start for England.

Ben Curry only featured once for England in the 2024 Autumn Nations Series, as he exploded off the bench in the opening round defeat to the All Blacks. Tom Curry was injured in that match, with Ben unable to play on the same England pitch as his brother. It will certainly be a proud day in the Curry household this Saturday, with Ben Curry set to build upon his impressive Sale Sharks form, and capitalise on Sam Underhill’s injury absence to retain his place within Borthwick’s plans.

4. Freddie Steward (Leicester Tigers)

The time is now for Freddie Steward to remind the England fans of his full capabilities, after the Leicester Tigers man was pushed to the fringes in recent months. Steve Borthwick has recently preferred George Furbank as his resident fullback, yet a fractured arm has curtailed any hopes of Six Nations rugby for the Northampton Saints man, with Steward back in the 15 jersey once again. Arguably’s England’s best asset under the high ball, Steward will be eager to emulate his areal expertise in Ireland, just as he did at the Allianz this past Autumn against South Africa.

The third round of the 2024 Autumn Nations Series was Steward’s sole involvement of November, with the fullback set for his first start since the previous Summer tour of New Zealand. Borthwick has pulled the trigger for Steward to star in the 15 shirt, despite the speculation that Steward was going to slot in on the wing against Ireland. There were previously rumours that Marcus Smith may return to fullback for the first round of the Six Nations, but the Harlequin has since been named in the 10 shirt, with Steward’s incoming start at 15 putting a close to that particular discussion.

5. Alex Mitchell (Northampton Saints)

The Northampton Saints man was in a spot of bother this past week, as Alex Mitchell took a brief break from the England squad to recover from a knee injury. However, the low-level injury concern has since come to fruition, and the Premiership champion has been named to command the attacking line from his regular spot in the England nine shirt. Mitchell has been chomping at the bit to return to the England squad, having battled back from an arduous neck injury that kept him on the sidelines earlier this season.

Mitchell has slotted straight back into where he left off, having leapfrogged the likes of Ben Spencer, Harry Randall, and Raffi Querke to retain his place in the starting XV. Leicester Tigers scrum half Jack van Poortvleit was a close contender for his starting jersey, yet a more severe injury to JVP ended the East Midlands tug-of-war over the nine shirt. Mitchell has been firing well for the Saints since his return, and is back for his first England minutes since the 2024 Summer tour of New Zealand.

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