England head coach Steve Borthwick praised the energy that young gun Henry Pollock provides after the back row’s try-scoring impact off the bench in the 25-7 win over Australia.
Pollock, making his first international appearance at Twickenham, scored his 3rd Test try just eight minutes after being introduced with the match in the balance against the Wallabies, setting up a final-quarter surge to victory.
The 20-year-old toured with the British and Irish Lions in the summer as he continued a rapid rise having been playing for his nation’s Under 20s as recently as during the Six Nations.
Having made his international bow off the bench in a big win over Wales, Pollock again made his presence felt as part of a huge impact from England’s replacements.
And Borthwick hailed both the talents of the youngster and the depth his squad now possesses in the back row after the win.
“Everybody’s excited when Henry Pollock gets on the pitch because of he brings,” Borthwick said. “There’s no doubt about that. He’s probably the most excited person!
“He is a ball of energy. I love having that character in the squad. I think we’ve got a great blend of personalities developing within the team. The senior leadership group have done a great job this week.
“I think you can see the team developing. Another aspect that I thought was a big positive there was the last quarter. You can see the experience that’s now developing within the team, the cohesion, the togetherness. There’s a number of games we’ve won in that final quarter.”
England face Fiji next week, with Borthwick unsure of the fitness of Freddie Steward after the full-back departed with a hand injury late on. They also face New Zealand and Argentina later in November.
