Sam Simmonds
Started like a steam train against Samoa, perhaps with a point to prove after it seemed to be made clear he was making his first England start by default, following an injury to Nathan Hughes, and the absence of any other options. It may be that his international future is not at No8 but the physical challenges do not come much greater than Samoa and he took it in his stride. He has sharp footwork which makes him elusive – as demonstrated by the 95 metres he made – and while he faded in the second half, there is more than enough evidence to suggest he will be involved in the Six Nations.
Henry Slade
Getting there, and considering how he grew into the second half against a tiring Samoa he will be among the more disappointed that England do not have a fourth autumn fixture next week. Slade’s versatility is among his strengths but taking his performances against Argentina and Samoa together, it is clear that he is more suited to outside-centre. Firstly, he has been playing there for a while with Exeter now and, as demonstrated against Samoa, he has that little bit more time to influence proceedings. Considering the form he was in before the autumn, however, he did not quite reach the heights we were hoping for.
Charlie Ewels
England are particularly well stocked at second row but it should not go unnoticed that Ewels has leapfrogged George Kruis in the pecking order. Kruis’s greatest strength is his ability at the lineout and Steve Borthwick is a huge fan of his studiousness but Ewels is a player Eddie Jones has had his eye on for a while now. He singled him out after his performance against the Barbarians in May and was similarly impressed with how he played against Argentina over the summer. While this was a mixed performance, he is slowly but surely acclimatising to the international stage.
Alex Lozowski
He had talked up his relish for the physical stuff before the Samoa match so it was perhaps unsurprising that the 24-year-old, was on the receiving end of some big hits. He sucked it up but perhaps his stock has slipped a little after his eye-catching performance off the bench against Argentina two weeks ago. Undoubtedly a talented playmaker but, all told, he is no closer to challenging Owen Farrell for England’s No12 jersey than he is for Saracens’ No10 shirt. Jones is wedded to playing George Ford at fly-half but perhaps not giving Lozowski a run there this autumn will prove an opportunity missed.
Ellis Genge
Anyone used to seeing those bullocking runs the prop produces so often for Leicester may be disappointed with his autumn showing but Eddie Jones has made it clear he would prefer to see Genge scrummaging well above all else. Against Samoa he was fine in that regard and he got through plenty of work with ball in hand, if for limited reward. The fact he used to play in the back row means he has clever footwork – often turning one yard into three or four – but he remains the third in line at loosehead, behind Mako Vunipola and Joe Marler, who shone off the bench on Saturday.
