🔗 Share this article

According to rugby specialists, Fin Smith has shown why he deserves the first-choice spot as England's fly-half against the All Blacks this weekend.

The Northampton Saints star produced without doubt the best defensive performance we have seen by an English playmaker in several years.

How he fronted up through regularly completing his tackles against a physical Fiji side stood out remarkably.

His game management was also immense - he demonstrated a perfect blend of finesse and composure, and made several crucial choices during moments were not going to plan during the opening period.

Tackling Prowess Coupled with Tactical Command

His capacity to settle the team strategically and make big calls represents an aspect he has really mastered.

From my perspective, the young fly-half is England's number one fly-half and deserves to begin against New Zealand next week.

I think head coach Steve Borthwick views it that way too, since Smith has demonstrated he can perform in big Test matches.

Squad Decisions and Competition

The experienced fly-half began the previous weekend versus the Wallabies for leadership reasons, and part of that choice was to provide continuity and reward his performance during the visit to South America.

But England's performance versus the Pacific Islanders represented a marked improvement compared to the display against Australia.

Australia lost in Italy on Saturday, so we should not get overly excited about that victory, that could have been by a larger margin given how off the pace Australia performed.

The Fijian team, by contrast, were much more threatening while offering a far tougher test.

Future Prospects

Fin Smith is still only twenty-three - looking ahead 24 months, with Ford challenging him while providing backup, I think Smith will find himself in an excellent position in his career.

The Harlequins star also has to be regarded as an option at the right time and versus the right opposition.

He is developing in his career while beginning to establish himself, though he requires liberty to demonstrate his unique attributes.

Bench Impact

New Zealand brought on Damian McKenzie, who registered the match-winning score to beat the Scottish team, demonstrating the significance of having players capable of creating genuine influence from the bench.

That kind of presence might represent the difference separating victory the global tournament from failure.

The All Blacks substitute watches the match unfold while substituted and thinks regarding ways he can make an impact upon entering.

His choices and error rate have enhanced substantially since his early professional days.

Positional Debate

If we can get Marcus to be such type influential player, then having him among substitutes could be beneficial.

However, at the moment I don't think Marcus represents the solution in the number fifteen position, making it a position remaining unclaimed.

The All Blacks will kick testing the English backfield, so it has to be watertight.

It is a position that needs to become a real strength, both defensively and in terms offensive transitions danger.

Currently, I don't think Marcus functions as full-back at the highest level.

I find it difficult to identify the advantage of playing him there.

I want possession in his hands as much as possible, but I believe that should be among starters, especially in the final 20 minutes.

Natural Instincts

Clearly there exist numerous similarities between Ford with Smith.

Fin has the capacity executing right decisions during tense moments - his natural reactions represent traits that can be coach.

I remember as he received possession at one stage within his territory and it looked like it could be should they spread play.

However during these milliseconds he calculated they needed to turn Fiji round since England were leading points-wise, therefore he punted it to pin them back and turn the screw.

This represents the type of playmaking that wins championships while claiming global tournaments.

Complete Package

He also has composure during intensity to organise the players around him, while recognizing that he doesn't always need as primary option.

I want to see him given the opportunity demonstrating this at elite standards soon, similar to George Ford accomplish, particularly during domestic matches week in and week out.

In Argentina, the experienced fly-half similarly excelled during challenging circumstances, previously one might suggest there have been times he has not quite delivered during extremely tense matches.

I think we have playmaking options who can do the role, though Smith's defence combined with everything else, establishes him as the more complete all-round player.

Tactical Setup

This also indicates you don't have to modify the defensive structure when you have an assertive player in the fly-half position, instead of an individual being somewhat reserved.

You could also make a strong case for Ford starting with Smith entering from substitution.

There are so many considerations that go on behind closed doors, but whichever way the management choose to proceed, it will give the opponents difficulties.

This hasn't consistently represented the situation facing New Zealand, when attention concentrated solely on picking the optimal individual.

On this occasion, either playmaker they choose will pressure the All Blacks under real pressure.

Fin's ability to pick the right kick and execute for a potential territorial gains can take all the stress away from England.