Six Nations 2026: England’s Ben Earl defends Steve Borthwick after Italy’s defeat

England’s Ben Earl defended Steve Borthwick’s record as head coach after their defeat to Italy and claimed that “large parts of their performance were outstanding”.

England suffered a 23-18 defeat in Rome – their first ever to Italy in 33 matches – and face the prospect of their worst Six Nations result.

The team needs to beat title-seeking France in Paris on Saturday to avoid ending the tournament with a record four defeats in five matches.

With pressure mounting on Borthwick after three grim defeats, the Rugby Football Union issued a statement of support on Sunday morning.

Earl, ranked eighth in England, also expressed his support for his coach, saying that the players must bear responsibility for the alarming level shown by the team.

“Just think what this team has achieved since Steve took over. We got third place in the World Cup,” Earl said.

“We won 12 out of 15 games, but we won 12 on the bounce. We beat the All Blacks for the first time at Twickenham since 2012.

“The hype is actually crazy, I think it’s crazy. If anyone’s letting Steve down, it’s us, the group.

“We need to play better in certain moments because we play well for 50 minutes, we play well for 40 minutes, we play well for 30 minutes. We just have to get it together – and we will do it.”