Rattled England look for big performance against Italy

After a disappointing performance in Round 1, England will be hungry to grab the opportunity placed before them in Round 2 – a lacklustre Italian outfit who took 50 points against the fiery French last weekend.

The English were pounced upon by an impressively determined and passionate Scottish outfit who put their bodies on the line to secure a first win (11-6) at Twickenham for 38 years.

Eddie Jones’ charges looked somewhat off the pace as they allowed their opponents to dictate the tempo of the match.

"I didn’t prepare the team well enough, we weren’t quite right and we were a long way off our best," Jones said after the match.

"I’m not sure [where they were lacking] and if I knew I would have fixed it.

"You just have days like that. It’s my responsibility every time the team goes on the field so I accept that. ‘

"We weren’t good enough today, we accept that so congratulations to Scotland."

The Scots dominated possession and territory with 65% and 70% respectively, leaving last year’s World Cup finalists with plenty to work on this week ahead of Round two. There has been much speculation since the game as to whether possible changes will be experimented with as regards the starting XV.

The good news for Franco Smith and his Italian side is that there is an opportunity to learn much from last weekend. What was blaringly obvious in Round 1 was that the Italian tackling lacks all elements which make the exercise effective. While the French are blessed with a host of fantastic runners, it often seemed that Teddy Thomas and co. were playing shadow rugby as they notched up 50 points on the scoreboard as Fabien Galthie looked on with satisfied expression.

Italian fans will be hoping that their team has ate, slept and breathed defence this week as they gear up to face what could be a vicious England side eager to pull their campaign out of the fire.

The historical perspective does not smile upon the Italians who have met England on 27 occasions but have never managed to prevail. Even after England’s sterile showing last weekend, Italy will be given little chance in this one. Improved performances from both teams in this match-up will be hoped for.