So after all that, we are right back to where it started; Do England play the Ford and Farrell axis? Will Tuliagi be fit? What is Elliot Dalys best position? Will Billy Vunipola perform? It all feels very 2019 doesn’t it?
Four years on and there is a strong feeling that those years of squad development have been well and truly squandered, with England still very heavily reliant on a Saracens core with Ford, Youngs, Curry and Watson as supporting casts.
Now, its at this point where I say this is squarely lies with Eddie Jones and Borthwick has to play with the weak hand he is dealt. You could argue that the only two potential starters for the opening match against Argentina to debut since 2019 is Freddie Steward and possibly Lewis Chessum.
The lack of transition from the 2019 squad has been botched, patchy and inconsistent, this is Jones’ legacy and so there is no surprise that Borthwick has gone back to those who got England to a World Cup final.
The current squad lacks speed and excitement, the omissions of Mitchell, Mercer and Murley symbolise this. The reason England came unstuck against the South Africans in Yokohama is the lack of Plan B, there doesn’t seem to be one here either.
Experience is certainly in abundance with the average age of 28, a total of 134 RWC caps, and three centurions in Farrell, Cole and Youngs. But most strikingly 16 of the 33 featured in the 2019 campaign, and you’d predict that almost all of those 16 will play in the matchday 23.
The question that therefore lingers over Borthwick and his team is whether Farrell and his boys can turn it on again, one last time.
It’s a question that’s been constantly posed over the last four years, but will the World Cup campaign be that special environment to bring back all those memories and create that little bit extra incentive to get the job done.
Their exclusion from the team on Saturday was harshly felt. But the reality is George, Itoje and Vunipola will need to play an awful lot of rugby to ensure any England success, the pressure lies on them to perform without any capable backups.
But just like the 1997 Chicago Bulls, can this old guard (admittedly without 5 titles) do it again? It feels like it’s their last dance together and the players know it too.
So, the challenge looms, can Farrell and his gang of 2019ers recreate their run one last time and go one better?
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