🔗 Share this article

According to rugby specialists, the young playmaker has shown that he merits the first-choice spot as England's number ten against New Zealand on Saturday.

The Northampton Saints star produced arguably the best defensive performance observed from an England fly-half for quite some time.

How he fronted up by consistently making defensive hits versus a physical Fijian team was impressive.

His game management proved exceptional - he demonstrated a perfect blend of finesse and composure, and made some strong choices during moments were not going to plan in the first half.

Tackling Prowess and Strategic Leadership

His ability to calm the squad tactically while making big calls is something he has truly mastered.

From my perspective, the young fly-half is England's primary playmaker and he should begin versus the All Blacks next week.

I believe the manager Steve Borthwick sees it that way too, because Fin has demonstrated he can perform in big international games.

Squad Decisions and Competition

George Ford began the previous weekend versus the Wallabies for leadership reasons, and part of that decision aimed at ensuring consistency and reward his performance from the tour of Argentina.

But England's showing versus the Pacific Islanders represented a marked improvement from the performance versus the Wallabies.

Australia were defeated in Italy last weekend, therefore we must avoid becoming overly excited about that victory, which should have been by a larger margin considering how off the pace Australia were.

Fiji, by contrast, proved significantly dangerous while offering a much more difficult test.

Future Prospects

The young playmaker remains just 23 - projecting forward two years, alongside Ford challenging him while providing backup, I think Fin will be in an excellent position in his career.

Marcus Smith also has to be regarded as an option when appropriate and versus suitable opponents.

He is developing as a player and is starting to find his feet, though he requires liberty to show his distinctive qualities.

Substitute Influence

The All Blacks brought on Damian McKenzie, who scored the match-winning score to beat Scotland, and that shows the importance of possessing individuals capable of creating genuine influence from the bench.

Such type of player might represent the deciding factor separating victory a World Cup from failure.

McKenzie watches the match unfold from the bench and thinks about how to create an impact when he comes on.

His decision-making and mistake frequency have enhanced significantly from his initial career.

Positional Debate

Should we develop Smith as such type influential performer, including him in the backfield could be beneficial.

However, at the moment I believe Marcus is the answer in the number fifteen position, making it a position that is still up for grabs.

New Zealand are likely to punt testing England's defensive line, therefore it must remain watertight.

This role that needs transforming into a real strength, in defense and in terms of the counter-attack danger.

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

I struggle to see the benefit fielding him in that position.

I prefer the ball in his hands frequently, but I believe that should be in the front line, especially during the last quarter.

Innate Qualities

Clearly there exist numerous similarities between Ford with Smith.

Smith possesses the capacity executing right choices during tense moments - his instincts represent traits you can really taught.

I remember as he received the ball at one stage just inside his own half and it looked like it could be should they spread play.

However during these milliseconds he thought the team required reversing Fiji round as we are up on the scoreboard, therefore he punted it to pin them back applying the screw.

That's the sort of fly-half play that wins championships and wins global tournaments.

All-round Ability

He additionally possesses composure under pressure to organise teammates nearby, while recognizing that he doesn't constantly serve to be the first receiver.

I hope to witness him given the opportunity to show this at elite standards soon, similar to George Ford accomplish, particularly during club level repeatedly and week out.

During the South American tour, Ford similarly excelled during challenging situations, previously one might suggest there have been times where he didn't fully done so during extremely tense matches.

I think we have playmaking options capable of performing the job, but with Fin's defensive work on top of everything else, it makes him the more complete all-round player.

Defensive System

It also means there's no need to modify the defensive structure while fielding someone aggressive in the fly-half position, rather than someone who is a little more reserved.

You could also make a strong case for Ford starting and Fin Smith coming off substitution.

There are so many factors that go on behind closed doors, however the coaches decide to go, it will give New Zealand problems.

That has not always been the narrative facing New Zealand, when attention was simply on picking the right player.

This time, either playmaker selected will pressure the All Blacks significantly.

Fin's ability selecting optimal kicks and execute enabling possible 50-20 can take pressure away from the national team.