Our experts’ England squad to face Wales

England face tough Six Nations test when Wales visit Twickenham Stadium on Saturday

England’s winning start to the Guinness Six Nations leaves Steve Borthwick with a dilemma to stick or twist against Wales.
George Martin could come back into the mix after joining the squad while playing Immanuel Feyi-Waboso against the country of his birth is another option for the England coach.
Telegraph Sport’s rugby experts pick the England team they would like to see feature in Borthwick’s starting XV at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.
A fit-again George Martin returns to the starting XV to reunite with Maro Itoje in the second-row pairing that started the World Cup semi-final. A tough call on Ethan Roots, but Martin’s return allows Ollie Chessum to switch to the blindside flank which will give England more line-out options and ballast. Ellis Genge returns to the bench if fit. With Immanuel Feyi-Waboso now capped against Italy, George Furbank comes onto the bench, which will be important given that Wales are likely to keep the ball in play to limit England’s line-out options.
No need to be especially radical so I will limit myself to one change, unleashing Immanuel Feyi-Waboso from the start against the country of his birth. England’s back line had a lot of encouraging moments against Italy, but the Exeter wing can add another dimension with his pace and power in place of the more experienced Elliot Daly. Other than that it is as you were with second row George Martin coming on to the bench assuming he proves his fitness. He would definitely be in contention to start the next match against Scotland meaning the rest of the loose forwards will have to up their game.
If George Martin is fit – and we know he is close – then I would promote him directly into the starting side. Ellis Genge comes onto my bench and I am also giving Joe Heyes a run. These three should all help to add additional punch. There might be a question mark over the line-out, but Ethan Roots showed himself to be secure in that area and Wales often keep the ball in play against England. Although I really want to fit in George Furbank somewhere, to reward his excellence for Northampton Saints, it is difficult.
No need to overly disrupt things just as the team are figuring each other out, but, the return of Ellis Genge and George Martin would be welcome. Maro Itoje, Ollie Chessum and Ethan Roots can effectively win the game if they disrupt Wales’ line-out, which went from atrocious to very competitive in Cardiff against Scotland. Certain players can have bigger impacts, like Fraser Dingwall and maybe Sam Underhill, but the first fallow week feels like the right time to truly reassess things.
Few changes, in the hope that continuity aids the development of this new side. George Martin, if fit, comes onto the bench, with the hope that 20 minutes at Twickenham is adequate preparation for the Calcutta Cup in the next round. In the starting XV, there are just two switches. Ellis Genge, now back to fitness, starts in place of Joe Marler and Dan Cole comes in to provide scrum solidity before the game breaks up. That is not slight on Marler and Will Stuart, who barely erred in Rome, and it is not a dropping; if the World Cup taught us anything it is that you need two sets of quality props at Test level, and they must be balanced. And, like Charlie, I would love to see George Furbank rewarded for his Northampton excellence. Where he fits is the million-dollar question.
Continuity will be key as England look to build on some pretty solid foundations established in Rome. Chandler Cunningham-South brought a fresh energy last week and I am curious to see how he’ll go alongside Ben Earl in a back row that has bucket loads of potential. The sole change to the back line sees Immanuel Feyi-Waboso handed his first Test start – his defensive capabilities will come in handy if a young Wales side are canny enough to exploit England in the outside channels, as Italy did too easily in Rome. Ellis Genge and George Martin should be eased into the action, if fit.