In a frustrating month for the England senior side, a 38-17 win for the A team over their Australian counterparts will have offered some positivity. It may also have provided a window into the future, because several players nudged Steve Borthwick.
Here are six who stood up.
Fraser Dingwall
Mark Mapletoft hinted afterwards that Borthwick had been keen for Dingwall, who was injured during an October training camp with the senior side, to lead the A team. An eloquent communicator who skippered England Under-20 in 2019, the Northampton Saints centre oozed class on the field and evidently oversaw a healthy environment because youngsters obviously felt uninhibited.
As part of a balanced back line, Dingwall knitted attacks together with subtle passing and deceptively powerful carrying. Linking nicely with the dynamic Oscar Beard, a complementary midfield partner, he stood at first-receiver and lifted deft pull-backs that allowed others to impart width.
Dingwall admitted himself that 2024 has been a “mixed bag”. He began it as England’s No 12 for the first two rounds of the Six Nations and won a Premiership title, delivering an impressive individual performance against Leinster in the Champions Cup semi-final in between times.
But the 25-year-old was also dropped after two Tests and travelled on the seniors’ summer tour to Japan and New Zealand without making an appearance. That said, before suffering a knee issue, Dingwall was name-checked by Joe El-Abd in October as a potentially important individual.
Joining forces with Ollie Lawrence is probably to be his most likely route to the England side. In that enterprise, Dingwall would likely defend in the 13 channel while attacking as a 12. He is probably more accomplished than Slade at straightening and making decisions on the gain line. Some have dismissed Dingwall’s potential, and he did come off worse in some collisions against Italy and Wales, but two caps is far too quick to write off such an unfussy facilitator.
Arthur Clark
England have several lithe locks. They could do with more robust bodies to help them lock down scrums and eke out maul metres. George Martin seems somewhat isolated in that regard. Clark, an age-grade contemporary of Jack van Poortvliet and Tom Roebuck, could fit the bill. He is understood to have admirers in high places and was drafted in because of an injury to Joe Batley, with Ted Hill required by Borthwick’s seniors.
The Gloucester man was industrious in defence and made a few rumbling carries. He can also take some credit for a scrum that looked powerful, with Asher Opoku-Fordjour and Joe Heyes the starting props before Emmanuel Iyogun and Afolabi Fasogbon arrived from the bench. Hugh Tizard and Rusi Tuima were the other locks in the squad, which suggests that Borthwick is eager on bringing through a burlier variety of second row such as Clark, who weighs 19st 12lb and stands around 6ft 7in tall.
Gabriel Ibitoye
All of the England A backs impressed, which is testament to the coaching of Mapletoft and Lee Blackett. The latter will return for next February’s fixture against Ireland A, which is a welcome development. That Ibitoye translated his Bristol Bears form was particularly heart-warming, because he is a rather unconventional wing.
He tore down the left flank in the build-up to Joe Heyes’s try, having been brought into the game by a first-phase move. Much later, he collected a quick transfer from Joe Carpenter in the back field and exchanged passes with Henry Pollock to create a score for Curtis Langdon. But it was his off-the-ball tracking in the build-up to Cadan Murley’s finish, which saw Ibitoye arc across from the far edge and over to the right, that summed up his day.
Ibitoye travelled the full width of the pitch to arrive on Beard’s shoulder and take a flicked offload. Staying calm in space, he fed Murley and celebrated his assist. Aside from being bundled into touch and being beaten to a high ball, Ibitoye was polished. To see his instincts and skill on show at this level was heartening. Pat Lam is one of many who are curious as to how Ibitoye could enliven Test matches.
Joe Carpenter
Remaining in the back three, Carpenter reinforced his promise as a sparky attacker. England’s No 15 shirt is currently bouncing between Freddie Steward and George Furbank. The former is viewed as the aerial specialist, the latter a more proficient attacker. Stay fit, and Carpenter could prove to be an explosive alternative who combines aspects of what Furbank and Steward offer respectively.
Tom Willis
Now, Willis might not have been entirely pleased with his afternoon’s work at the Twickenham Stoop. Australia A defended combatively for long periods and often smothered him in two-man tackles. But the Saracen kept coming, and caused the tourists to creak more and more as the game went on. With his first touch of the second half, he seemed to have lost impetus before swatting away Massimo de Lutiis, the Australia A tighthead prop, and surging up-field.
There are not many No 8s left like Willis left in England, and his willingness to hold the middle and ride through traffic undoubtedly helped colleagues such as Pollock pick moments more selectively.
Will Porter
Alex Mitchell is perhaps the player whose stock has risen the most this month, because the Saints scrum-half has been conspicuous by his absence. A tidy and intuitive outing from Porter, who has usurped Danny Care at Harlequins, will keep him in the conversation. The pecking order under Mitchell still looks wide open.
