England v Scotland player ratings: Marcus Smith 'found lacking in game management department'

Steve Borthwick's reign as England coach got off to a losing start as Scotland claimed their third win in a row against England. Two Duhan van der Merwe tries - the first one of the all-time great scores at Twickenham - helped Gregor Townsend's side to a deserved win in an entertaining match in south west London.

The visitors defended heroically and attacked with vim, marshalled by the brilliant Finn Russell and while England far from disgraced themselves there were too many errors from the hosts.

So who had a match to remember and who had an 80 minutes to forget?

England

15. Freddie Steward

As ever was imperious under the high ball and made his case as England’s first-choice full-back in Borthwick’s rejigged side. Was a nuisance for Scotland down the flank and carried well into contact, but didn’t do anything spectacular. Enjoyed a few surges forward but was repeatedly snuffed out by determined Scottish defence. 6/10

14. Max Malins

Was given the role of roaming winger and delivered when it mattered. Initially struggled to exploit the space on his first few attempts to drift into the action but he kept the faith. Had the composure to safely take Smith’s crossfield kick and ground England’s opener for his first international try, before sliding over for another. 8

13. Joe Marchant

Looked sharp and sprightly when he had the ball but the dynamism we were promised with his partnership with Owen Farrell never materialised. At one point he managed to underline his potential as a crash runner in a homage to the dropped Manu Tuilagi. 7

12. Owen Farrell

Not his finest performance in an England shirt. Clattered into Russell slightly late in the first half which was met with approval from the Twickenham crowd - tackle school has been treating him well. Showed silky hands but could have been more of a disruptive force in the build up to Scotland’s opening try. Patchy from the tee. 5

11. Ollie Hassell-Collins

Looked hungry and bright on debut and helped put pressure on Scotland in the opening exchanges. Underlined his industriousness off the ball when chasing down Max Malin’s long-range kick in the first half, but the personnel did not arrive quickly enough and was penalised for holding on. 5

10. Marcus Smith

Nice little grubber through early on to put England on the front foot but was swallowed by dark blue shirts. Showed flashes of his usual brilliance and was England’s main source of creativity going forward but was found lacking in the game management department. Brilliant vision to spot Malins on his wing for his side’s opener. 5

9. Jack Van Poortvliet

Enjoyed a much better outing than his horror show against New Zealand in the autumn. Solid distribution from the base of the ruck and orchestrated a flurry of good attacking passages. Just about justified his starting shirt ahead of the more experienced Ben Youngs, but was one of the culprits who missed Van der Merwe as the Scot touched down. 7

1. Ellis Genge

Gave away a scrum penalty in the first half but otherwise had a productive afternoon with his explosive carrying and hustled well around the breakdown. Crashed over after the break in an energetic passage of play from the pack. 6

2. Jamie George

Didn’t have the cleanest of afternoons to start off with at the lineout and was guilty of overthrowing but was more influential as the game wore on. Got on top of his opposite number at scrum-time after the break. 6

3. Kyle Sinkler

Was one of those who grew into the game. Punctured the gain line and produced a couple of leg-busting drives to put England on the front foot and showed his experience. 5

4. Maro Itoje

Had a quiet first half by his standards. Produced a number of crunching carries and was a key player in helping patiently build the phases that led to England’s opener. Showed flashes of the disruptive force he is capable of being at the lineout. 5

5. Ollie Chessum

Stood out with his aggressive carrying in the loose and gave England lots of front-foot ball. Produced a monstrous tackle on Russell just as the Scottish playmaker looked set to launch an attack in the first half. 7

6. Lewis Ludlam

Had a great day at the office. His industriousness around the park gave England a good attacking platform. Carried into heavy traffic and timed his offload perfectly to draw Stuart Hogg and set Malins up for his second. Arduously chased down Malin’s hack upfield to put pressure on Russell, which was reflective of his impeccable work rate. 8

7. Ben Curry

On his first Test cap since November 2021, he looked abrasive in the tackle but was chopped down on a number of occasions just as he started to get going. Worked a nice crash ball well en route to Genge’s try but missed a tackle when White glided over. Showed only fleeting glimpses of why he’s been one of the Premiership’s most consistent performers this season. 4

8. Alex Dombrandt

A position where England have struggled for continuity and the jury’s still out on whether he has nailed down the No 8 shirt. Looked strong in the carry, despite spilling the ball on a few occasions just as England looked ready to pull the trigger. Pierced the gainline beautifully in the build up to Malins’ second try and won a penalty on the 22 after England turned over possession on the cusp of half time. 7

Substitutes

Anthony Watson - 4 
Dan Cole - 7
Mako Vunipola - 7
Nick Isiekwe - 5
Ben Youngs - 6
Ben Earl - 6

Scotland

15. Stuart Hogg

Hadn’t played competitively since December 24 and at times the rustiness showed. Bungled his pass inside to Kyle Steyn down the wing when Scotland surged forwards and caught England napping. 6

14. Kyle Steyn 

Looked lively when he came off his wing and probably would have scored had Hogg’s attacking pass not been behind him. 7  

13. Huw Jones

Telepathy with Sione Tuipulotu looked good, as it has been all season at Glasgow. Showed real composure to cleanly ground Tuipulotu's grubber to give Scotland the opening advantage. 8

12. Sione Tuipulotu

Prodded through an astute grubber for Jones’ opening try to get the ‘Huwipulotu’ partnership up and firing at Test level. A midfield combination that will surely only get more dangerous with time. 9

11. Duhan van der Merwe

You won’t see a better try in this championship. Scythed through England’s defence for an impeccable solo try that will give Kevin Sinfield nightmares for life. Bounced off about five white shirts in the process. 9

10. Finn Russell

Produced a second-half masterclass which ultimately inspired Scotland to victory. His crisp passing was instrumental in orchestrating waves of Scottish attack and enjoyed a solid afternoon from the tee. 9

9. Ben White

A fine shift considering this was just his second Test cap. Solid service from the ruck and managed a flurry of good exits with his box-kicking before dancing through a porous England defence for his try. 8

1. Pierre Schoeman

Occasionally struggled to impose himself in the scrum but carried well. Was hooked for Jamie Bhatti shortly after the hour mark. 5

2. George Turner

Delivered a clever looping pass to Jamie Ritchie in the build up play for Jones’ opener and hustled well in defence. 7

3. WP Nel

Was a bit of a gamble at tighthead but put in a big defensive shift when Scotland had their backs to the wall. Probably missed the power game provided by Zander Fagerson at the set-piece. 6

4. Richie Gray

Stood tall for Scotland all day. Delivered the crucial ball under pressure just as Malins threatened to ambush him en route to Van Der Merwe’s second. 8

5. Grant Gilchrist

Had a solid game. Did a lot of behind the scenes work and was a lynchpin for the Scottish defence. 7

6. Jamie Ritchie

Predictably led from the front. Showed his experience but spilled a pass from Russell not long after the break just as Scotland were settling into another attacking rhythm. 8

7. Luke Crosbie

Looked good for someone in just their third Test. He was a defensive workhorse for Scotland and broke the gainline on several occasions. 6

8. Matt Fagerson

Was one of Scotland’s more creative forwards and probably just about edged it in the No.8 battle. 6

Substitutes

George Horne - 6 
Jamie Bhiatti - 6
Jack Dempsey - 6
Blair Kinghorn - 7 
Fraser Brown - 8
Simon Berghan - 7