🔗 Share this article

This marks a curious aspect of England's November clean sweep that there were no debutants earned their first cap during the series of matches, a scenario not seen in a quarter of a century. However, Max Ojomoh's display against the Argentine side while securing his second cap felt like the breakthrough of a major talent.

Standout Display in Tight Win

He proved to be the star turn in what was the team's most challenging outing of the autumn. He scored the opening touchdown before creating the other two. The setup for Immanuel Feyi-Waboso via a delightful cross-field kick was the champagne moment of the first half. Likewise, his quick offload to Henry Slade for England's final score was just as impressive, capping off a fine debut performance at the home stadium for the young player.

He has the kind of triple threat that every manager would want from their inside-centre. He can run, kick and pass, and he has featured at fly-half and at multiple midfield roles for Bath this campaign.

Quick Ascent and Upcoming Opportunities

Only a little over a week since Steve Borthwick might have felt he had finally unearthed his midfield duo for the long term. But, the highest praise that can be given to the young star is that Borthwick may have to reconsider. Ojomoh was initially selected to an national team previously, but had to wait until the last game of the overseas trip to earn his first cap. Injuries to teammates created the opportunity for him to start here, and he undoubtedly will be in contention for a further appearance when England reconvene to start their championship quest in the new year.

• Versatile Skillset: Can play fly-half and midfield.
• Key Contributions: Scored one try and set up two more.
• Timely Impact: Stepped up when others were injured.

Team Background and Broader Implications

Where might the team have fared against their opponents without Ojomoh? Certainly they had some fortune and maybe it is no coincidence that he was their best player. The team showed an inevitable drop-off in energy following a significant victory over the All Blacks. Maybe the coach ought to have freshened things up.

A balanced view is required, though. It is tempting to criticize the side for their inability to inject much urgency into this match, or for nearly losing a fixture they were dominating. However, this result marks a perfect record of four autumn fixtures for the initial occasion since 2016. 2025 ends with 11 straight wins after beginning with a defeat. The team is halfway through the World Cup cycle and things look considerably rosier for the coach than they did previously.

Player Pool and Future Planning

Borthwick appears that, with time remaining from the World Cup, he understands the core group of the team he will take to Australia. Naturally, there will be the surprise inclusion. But there are very few existing players of the roster who are not in contention for the upcoming event.

That represents an benefit because it posed an issue for his preceding coach, who struggled when it was clear that veterans were not going to feature in his strategy. Borthwick seems to have taken action earlier, preventing the difficult beginning that plagued the team in the past.

Player rankings seem like they belong to seafarers of the past, but coaches swear by them and Borthwick can be happy with his. On another day, the team might be dealing with a loss after a gut-wrenching narrow loss. The fact they avoided that is largely due to Ojomoh, luck, and the strength of England's substitutes. While Borthwick plots a course to the championship, he has positive momentum after 11 wins in a row, and therefore we can forgive the paucity of the recent display.