Jones should use chance to give his ‘finishers’ a start

England can afford to make changes against Italy and put bench players in the spotlight

ngland are the only country in the Six Nations Championship who have not lost to Italy. Given they are playing at home, against a struggling Italian team, that will not change this coming Sunday at Twickenham. It is, therefore, the only game in which the England head coach, Eddie Jones, can afford to make a few changes and experiment with his team units.

Some, or none, of the following might feature in Jones’s thinking, but they are all possibilities which, in time, can give England more flexibility and answer some crucial questions.

Jones has yet to settle on his back three, apart from Mike Brown, who has been an everpresent. What we do not know is what England plan to do if Brown gets injured or loses form. Putting Elliot Daly at 15 with Jack Nowell and Jonny May on either wing would be one option. Daly has the footballing intelligence to adapt and a monumental boot that would win most kicking duels. Another alternative would be to look at Alex Lozowski at the back. Defensively sound, he has an appreciation of the game that is enhanced by his ability to play fly-half. His communication with those in front of him is like that of Alex Goode, who can count himself unlucky not to feature in Jones’s plans. This is invaluable in identifying opportunities and threats that are apparent from the greater perspective of full-back but not further forward, when a defensive line is only a few yards away. Lozowski could also play at 10, with Owen Farrell outside him to ease him into the position, but he seems unlikely to play given his release to Saracens on Friday. Most things Jones does I understand, even if I do not agree with him. I cannot understand him stating that Lozowski is “the find of the season” then not playing him to see how big a discovery he is. That Ben T’eo deserves more game time is axiomatic; per minute on the field his contribution to the England cause is possibly greater than any other player. The question is whether you play him at 12 or 13 and which fly-half – George Ford or Farrell – plays inside him? I would be tempted to start him outside Ford. Farrell is an automatic choice somewhere in any starting XV but, as with Brown, Jones would find out how good his side is without