There were plenty of stand-out displays from both the starters and replacements as England began their Autumn Nations Series campaign with a comfortable win over Tonga at Twickenham on Saturday
Sunday 7 November 2021 08:05, UK
We look at how England's players rated as they opened their Autumn Nations Series campaign with a 69-3 win over Tonga at Twickenham…
Freddie Steward: The Leicester Tigers man uses his large frame to good effect and is hard to stop. Against Tonga, he was unbeatable in the air. 7/10
Adam Radwan: The Newcastle Falcons winger is just two caps into his international career and his try tally already stands at four after opening the scoring for England in this match. 7
Henry Slade: Named as man of the match and played with freedom at outside centre where he exposed the Tongan defence. 8
Manu Tuilagi: A first Test outing since March 2020 and it was like he had never been away, with a couple of particularly notable carries which put Tonga on the back foot. 7
Jonny May: Two tries elevate his record to 35 in 67 caps and only Rory Underwood, ahead of him on England's all-time try-scorers list, can compare. 7
George Furbank: Although mainly deployed at full-back by club Northampton Saints, he was asked to fill the void left by Owen Farrell's absence at fly-half and showed vision in attack. 7
Ben Youngs: Another of England's old guard, the country's most-capped scrum-half finished with two tries. 7
Ellis Genge: The prop showed his strength to rampage through the Tonga defence and set up a try for Maro Itoje. 7
Jamie George: Initially omitted from England's autumn squad and was on a mission to prove Eddie Jones wrong, grabbing two tries in the process. 7
Kyle Sinckler: He conceded an early penalty at a scrum, but otherwise bristled with intent in a tough battle up front. 7
Maro Itoje: One of the icons of this generation of England players, the Saracens man was a typically-influential presence in England's engine room and crossed for a try. 7
Jonny Hill: A player looking to cement his place in the second row and this display will have done him no harm. 7
Courtney Lawes: Named captain in Farrell's absence, he must have pushed Slade hard for man of the match. Lawes was everywhere, as typified by his try-saving tackle. 8
Sam Underhill: Replaced at half-time after taking a bang to his head during a tackle but was physical until then. 6
Tom Curry: Not as omnipresent as usual and his transition to No 8 is still a work in progress. 6
Replacements: Marcus Smith drew a cheer from the crowd when he arrived off the bench and he was a star of the afternoon as he ran in a try and set up two others. A superstar in the making. Alex Mitchell and Jamie Blamire also capped cameos with tries. 8
