Wales vs England Review – Six Nations 2026
England 48 – 7 Wales
With England’s far stronger Autumn campaign and ominous form, most people were expecting a clear victory for the hosts to kick off their campaign. And they were right; England took the lead in just about every area, and were far more clinical and composed in their opportunities compared to their less disciplined opponents.
For what it’s worth though, Wales did generally improve on last year’s embarrassment; tactically, they had a better idea of how to approach the game, and there were fewer awful performances and more solid ones. No one really stood out, though, and with a dire scoreline at half time, no one would be forgiven for expecting the sins of the past to drag them back into another demolishment.
Both sides had moments of non-thought and ill-discipline, but Wales’ were more frequent and more costly, and their attack wasn’t ruthless enough to compensate. There’s no quick fix here; this is just the gap between both teams at the moment. There are tweaks to be made going forward that might be enough for Wales to bounce back later down the line (especially with how weak Ireland and Scotland were in their own opening matches) but with things as they are, the team will need to do better than that to avoid the Wooden Spoon.
Player Ratings
1: Nicky Smith – 3
Against his Leicester partner, gave a poor account of himself in the scrum war. His yellow card was the deserved result of Wales’ constant penalty woes rather than his own weakness, but from one of the team’s more constant players this was not a great showing.
2: Dewi Lake – 3
Has come under fire for his lineout throwing, which was actually solid this game, but everything else was not. As leader, his own showings of poor discipline and mental fog did little but hold the team back for the first half, and his illegal maul takedown earned him a deserved yellow. Better second half, but there’s no coming back from that at this level.
3: Archie Griffin – 7
By default, the best of the front row, but Griffin generally gave a strong showing. Struggled in the scrum without his captain, but put in a solid shift around the park to compensate, making all 11 of his tackles. Couldn’t ask much more of him against a pack of England’s quality.
4: Dafydd Jenkins – 4
One of my favourite players here, but this was an underperformance. 3 penalties is below his standards, and while he topped the tackle charts as expected, his usual game intelligence evaded him as he also missed 3. Needs to to a little better
5: Adam Beard – 6
It’s weird to be lauding a player for achieving a 6/10, but with how much criticism he’s come under Beard actually had a pretty solid game. Underutilised at the lineout, he remained a notable presence around the park, making 9 tackles and 4 carries. Probably keeps his spot next week.
6: Alex Mann – 5
Did a good job winding up Ellis Genge and earning a penalty, and put in a nice shift on both sides of the ball, but ended up being taken away to accommodate the yellows. Quieter than his teammates as a result
7: Josh Macleod – 6
Not exceptional, but still belongs at this level. Great work to win a turnover and gave England consistent difficulties throughout his time on the pitch, aided by some decent carries, but England’s backrow has 3 7s and he’s not at their level.
8: Aaron Wainwright – 7
Pure workhorse, and arguably Wales’ best performer. Beat 5 defenders, and actually looked a match for the world class Ben Earl. Not enough power to keep them in the game, though.
9: Tomos Williams – 6
Needed more speed out of the ruck to counter England’s physicality, but kept a decent level of control when Wales had possession and was a persistent defender.
10: Dan Edwards – 6
Good kicking performance, especially for Josh Adams’ try, but was defensively a lot weaker. Can’t take all the blame for how comfortably Freeman and Dingwall made dents in the centrefield, but certainly could’ve done more.
11: Josh Adams – 5
Not a lot of opportunities, but took them well. Good account of himself under the high ball and scored the only try, but Wales couldn’t get nearly enough ball to him.
12: Ben Thomas – 2
Thomas’ festive season showings looked promising, but he self-destructed here. Missed 2 of his 6 tackle attempts and made persistent errors, like his brainless pass attempt to Rees-Zammit and his eventual yellow. Shouldn’t keep this jersey.
13: Eddie James – 6
Showed his potential with some strong carries, but Wales just couldn’t give him the ball enough. Good defensive shift too, missing none of his tackles when Wales hated defending the midfield.
14: Ellis Mee – 5
Not enough attacking plays, but was quite good under the high ball. Mee is certainly a player with potential at this level, but with how Wales are relative to the other Six Nations sides, they need to give him enough room to work with.
15: Louis Rees-Zammit – 7
Made a mistake in coming offside and completely flubbed one high ball; generally looked a little green at fullback at international level. Still, his one break showed his quality, and was much better under the high ball than Blair Murray in the Autumn, countering a powerful spiral bomb from Ford. Should stay here going forward.
BENCH
16: Liam Belcher – 4
Could’ve given him an N/A given how little he really impacted proceedings. 1 carry and 1 tackle in 23 minutes, not his trademark workrate
17: Rhys Carré – 6
Deserves a decent score for a decent game. Constantly got Wales moving forward with ball in hand and made a case to start again the massive France pack. Didn’t help the scrum much, though.
18: Tomas Francis – 5
Quite anonymous, but nice to see him back on the test arena. Added some stability to the scrum when Wales needed it, but didn’t bring Griffin’s level of workrate.
19: Ben Carter – N/A
Should’ve probably been called in earlier given his defensive skills
20: Taine Plumtree – 6
Has had his fair share of yellows, but this one was harder to avoid given Pollock was mid-dive. Added a lot more dynamism in attack when Wales were lacking, and makes a case that the bench is his best position.
21: Harri Deaves – 6
Like Plumtree, minus the errors for the most part. Some strong carries and good defensive work, though England had Wales beat by that point and Deaves couldn’t do enough on his own.
22: Keiran Hardy – N/A
Tomos was pretty good, and with Dewi struggling, his leadership was needed. Hardy probably isn’t getting much gametime if this pattern persists.
23: Mason Grady – 6
Like Plumtree and Deaves, had the energy to match England and gave them a real challenge in the carry, but couldn’t reverse England’s momentum.
My Team for Next Week:
1: Rhys Carré
2: Dewi Lake
3: Tomas Francis
4: Ben Carter
5: Dafydd Jenkins
6: Olly Cracknell
7: Josh Macleod
8: Aaron Wainwright
9: Tomos Williams
10: Dan Edwards
11: Josh Adams
12: Joe Hawkins
13: Eddie James
14: Ellis Mee
15: Louis Rees-Zammit
BENCH
16: Ryan Elias
17: Nicky Smith
18: Archie Griffin
19: Rhys Davies
20: Freddie Thomas
21: James Botham
22: Kieran Hardy
23: Mason Grady
Besides dropping Thomas for Hawkins, the backline did decently well for what they were given, so I’ve kept the system the same. Grady could start for some extra physical energy, though he offers more utility in the 6-2 split. Otherwise, power will be needed against the strongest team in the Six Nations, while aerial control remains a focus as France try to expand into this area of their game. Maintaining territory will be critical; possession and consistency in the 22 can give us the tools to keep France on the backfoot, as Dupont and Bielle-Biarrey will smell blood if Wales’ errors persist.
The front rows swap as they have both the larger size and generally the strongest form after this weekend’s battering. I’d swap Lake and Elias if I could, but that probably won’t happen so it can stay as is. Mann and Deaves had strong games, but France have no problem overwhelming smaller backrowers, so Botham and Cracknell get in to help mitigate that.
Beard could’ve stayed, but I can justify giving Dafydd another chance as the locks will need to be more abrasive, and Carter has been in good form while Rhys Davies is overdue a spot. Freddie Thomas is an interesting one, as I would have him take Cracknell’s place at blindside; not his usual position, but he also provides a powerful carrying platform and should bring dynamism off the bench; his size and more consistent discipline gives him an edge over Plumtree, as Botham compensates for the lost versatility.
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