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This marks a curious feature of the English team's November clean sweep that no new players made their first cap throughout the series of matches, a scenario not seen in 25 years. However, Max Ojomoh's display against Argentina while earning his second appearance seemed to be the arrival of a major talent.

Standout Display in Tight Victory

Ojomoh was the star turn in what was England's least convincing outing of the November series. He finished off the first try before creating the other two. The setup for Immanuel Feyi-Waboso via a exquisite long pass was the champagne moment of the first half. Similarly, his quick offload to Henry Slade for England's third try was equally eye-catching, concluding a fine first outing at Twickenham for the young player.

He has the sort of triple threat that all coaches would want from their inside-centre. He can run, kick and pass, and he has featured at number ten and at both centre positions for his club this campaign.

Quick Ascent and Upcoming Opportunities

It is just eight days since the head coach might have felt he had finally unearthed his centre partnership for the future. But, the highest praise that can be given to the young star is that the coach may have to reconsider. Ojomoh was initially selected to an England squad four years ago, but had to bide his time until the last game of the summer tour to make his debut. Fitness issues to other players paved the way for him to begin here, and he surely will be in consideration for a further appearance when England reconvene to begin their championship campaign in the coming months.

• Multiple Abilities: Excels at number ten and midfield.
• Key Contributions: Scored one try and assisted two.
• Important Performance: Delivered when others were injured.

Squad Background and Wider Implications

Where might England have been against Argentina without him? Certainly they rode their luck and perhaps it is not surprising that he was their standout performer. The team experienced an natural decline in energy following a major win over the All Blacks. Maybe Borthwick ought to have freshened things up.

A balanced view is needed, though. One might be inclined to criticize England for their inability to inject much urgency into this match, or for almost throwing away a fixture they were dominating. But, this result completes a perfect record of November matches for the first time since recent years. The year concludes with 11 straight wins after starting with a loss. We are midway in the World Cup cycle and things look considerably rosier for Borthwick than they did at this stage.

Player Pool and Long-Term Strategy

Borthwick gives the impression that, two years out from the World Cup, he knows the vast majority of the squad he will bring to the host nation. Naturally, there will be the odd bolter. Yet there are not many existing players of the roster who are not on track for the 2027 tournament.

That represents an advantage because it was a problem for his preceding coach, who struggled when it was clear that certain players were not going to play in his strategy. He seems to have taken action earlier, preventing the difficult start that plagued the squad in the previous cycle.

Depth charts seem like they belong to sailors of the past, but coaches swear by them and Borthwick can be happy with his. On another day, England might be dealing with a loss after a gut-wrenching narrow loss. That they were not is largely due to the young star, luck, and the quality of the bench. While the coach plans the route to the championship, he has positive momentum after 11 wins in a row, and therefore we can forgive the lack of quality of this performance.