'Marcus Smith benched' – Makers and Breakers: England team to play Italy in Six Nations

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Steve Borthwick has named his England team to play Italy, with some notable changes in store for the fourth round of the 2025 Guinness Men’s Six Nations. Borthwick has made three alterations to the team that started against Scotland, with the head coach finding no place in his XV for Marcus Smith.

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

Whilst Smith has been removed from his reoccurring spot at fullback, the Harlequin has been retained upon the substitutes bench as the 23rd man. Borthwick is preparing his side to make it 32 straight wins against the Italians, with the Azzurri unable to pick up a win over England in their entire 25-year shared history. Gonzalo Quesada coached his team to their closest ever result last year, as the opening round of the 2024 Guinness Six Nations was decided by just three points (27-24.)

However, Italy suffered a heavy defeat in their lastest Six Nations fixture, as France hammered home an emphatic 73-24 landslide in Rome. England are under no illusions that Italy will be out to make amends, with Borthwick making the following changes to get the best out of his squad. Here are the makers and breakers from the England team to play Italy, in the fourth round of the 2025 Six Nations.

MAKER: FRASER DINGWALL (Northampton Saints)

BREAKER: HENRY SLADE (Exeter Chiefs)

We’ll start off in the centres, and there has been a change to the England midfield for the first time since the second round of the 2024 Six Nations. Henry Slade partnered up with Fraser Dingwall for that 16-14 win over Wales, before the Exeter man would form a midfield duo with Ollie Lawrence for the following 13 England Tests. However, Slade is now out of the match day 23, with no injuries reported from the official England sources.

The question marks began to emerge around Slade’s contention, after the Chiefs man spent England’s trip to York open training session on the sidelines. Slade took no active part in the open training session up in York, and instead spent the most part of the session on a pitch-side Watt bike at the LNER Stadium. Dingwall is chomping at the bit to be back in the fold, with the centre making up a pivotal point of the green, black and gold influence upon England’s back line.

MAKER: ELLIOT DALY (Saracens)

BREAKER: MARCUS SMITH (Harlequins)

Marcus Smith will be utilised as an impact substitute against Italy, as Steve Borthwick prefers to run with Elliot Daly as the starting fullback. Fin Smith retains his place at fly half, with no space for the talismanic Harlequin to take a lead in the fourth round clash. Borthwick is excited to see the dynamo tear into a fatigued Italian defence in the match’s latter stages, in what could well become the cutting blow for Gonzalo Quesada’s side.

Elliot Daly starts his first England Test since the final round of the 2024 Six Nations, when England battled France in a hard-fought defeat. Borthwick will unleash the Saracen in a new position compared to recent appearences, as Daly was a re-occurring face upon England’s left wing throughout last year’s Championship, as he started in the eleven shirt for all but one of the competition’s fixtures. Daly was also utilised on the wing throughout the majority of the 2023 Rugby World Cup campaign, whilst the multi-tool player also enjoyed a run out at inside centre, throughout his time in France.

MAKER: JAMIE GEORGE (Saracens)

BREAKERS: LUKE COWAN-DICKIE (Sale Sharks) / THEO DAN (Saracens)

In the week which Jamie George will earn his 100th England Test cap, the hooker has been named to start against Italy. It is a momentous involvement for the former England captain, with the milestone falling into place to line up with his first start of the 2025 Six Nations. Whether this is Steve Borthwick recognising the sense of occasion for George, or if the head coach is eyeing up an alternative tactical approach for England’s front row, it is certainly a well timed break for the Saracen.

Having started in the first three rounds of the 2025 Six Nations, Luke Cowan-Dickie is now out of the starting XV for England. The Sale Sharks man had steadily come into his own as Borthwick opted to use Jamie George as an impact substitute, yet Cowan-Dickie will have to watch on from the bench as the action gets underway at the Allianz. Also, spare a thought for Theo Dan, as the hooker is once again left out of the match day 23, despite being a consistent feature of the England camp and with 21 caps to his name.

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QUIZ: Can You Name EVERY Player in England’s 2016 Six Nations Grand Slam Squad?

England last won the Six Nations Grand Slam back in 2016, in what was Eddie Jones’ first Championship in charge. Taking over from Stuart Lancaster, Jones appointed a new captain to his side, in what was the start of a record equalising 18-test match winning streak.

Jones named a 33-man squad for the 2016 Six Nations, and we’ve laid out the challenge for you to name each and every one of the players. Due to the extra toughness of this one, we’ve given a slightly longer time limit for you to rattle off the answers.

Your time starts… now!

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