I would have dropped Farrell for Lawrence and learnt something

Max Malins getting a first start at full-back is definitely the most interesting selection by England. He is a huge talent and has a great ability to beat defenders. You get a sense that his last line of defence against France will be tested more than against any other side.

I would be tempted, if I were him – and bear with me here

– to man mark Antoine Dupont. If you watch France play, most of their secondary breaks come from their half-backs, and Dupont is the same, he is always on the end of the second pass. I would be tempted to man mark him, blitz up and try to shut him down, because Malins has the pace to cover the back field and blitz a pass back to the middle.

The message to Elliot Daly, dropped to the bench, is that he has to improve. But where will his opportunities to play better come from – in the Championship? Daly is a great player, he has been on a British and Irish Lions tour, has 50 caps. But I have never thought full-back is his best position.

When he was playing 13 for Wasps, I thought he was almost the perfect outside centre: great acceleration, good pace, that left boot which is such a good option, particularly when used to kick clear out of your own 22. I know Henry Slade is similar with his left foot at 13, but England have not used him well in that regard.

And that comes back to style of play. Ben Youngs is one of the best attacking No9s around the fringes that England have ever had. We are not seeing much of that at the moment – it is almost as if there is a frustration with the style of play. Is that same choice of style stopping Daly from doing the things he is best at?

This is not the end of his career, but he has to think how he reinvents himself, because if Malins has a stormer, it becomes very hard to get back into the team.

Outside of Malins, however, there are limited ways that Eddie Jones can make changes, given the Covid-19 bubble. What would the team have been had Covid not played a part? The bubble has limited movement in and out. Would it have been too big a scenario to drop or rest Owen Farrell? Taking the captaincy aside, were his numbers good enough to stay in the team? England have an opportunity now to try things in this Six Nations, and while we know Farrell and Jones are intrinsically linked, would it have done Farrell any long-term damage if he was dropped for this game and Ollie Lawrence started?

I wonder what George Ford thinks of this, whether he might have been keen to work on a new style with a different inside centre, because if you are Ford, you almost end up being tied to Farrell’s form.

If there were no bubble limits, Sam Simmonds would surely be in the squad. There is no doubt about that, is there? I might have played Simmonds alongside Tom Curry and Billy Vunipola in the back row. You might lose a bit in the line-out there, but you could try to change the style of play, go high-tempo, high-possession. I think Simmonds will be part of the Lions squad.

If England were casting the net further, Piers O’conor is playing incredibly for Bristol. He does everything very well as a centre.

Is Marcus Smith playing better than George Ford? Certainly at club level, but we do not know how he would get on with England’s style.

This might be viewed as left-field, but if the gloves were off and you could pick any back line, I would have Slade at full-back, stick with Anthony Watson and Jonny May on the wings, although I would be tempted by Jack Nowell if fit. Midfield, I would go with Lawrence and O’conor, with Ford and Youngs at half-back. The forwards? You choose … I do not really care about them.

As for France, the back row of Charles Ollivon, Dylan Cretin and Gregory Alldritt is superb, and Virimi Vakatawa is back and a huge danger. They have gone for a six-two split on the bench, which is surprising. You look at that French team and it oozes quality. Hopefully not, but I think they will win at Twickenham, which has not been done by France in the Six Nations since 2005. Should England lose again, they would be keen to bring in more fresh faces, but England’s bubble will have to pop before that happens.