Six Nations 2026: Pollock’s debut and Crowley’s call - England and Ireland make big player calls for Week 3 blockbuster

by Devesh Jaganath | by Devesh Jaganath

image Six Nations 2026: Pollock’s debut and Crowley’s call - England and Ireland make big player calls for Week 3 blockbuster
After a drubbing at Murrayfield and a close-run victory in Dublin, England and Ireland will be looking to get their Six Nations campaigns back on track when they meet at Twickenham this afternoon. Both head coaches have made big selection decisions for this clash - let’s take a look at the players who could shape the outcome in this one.

Borthwick to send out new-look back row against Ireland

After losing the Calcutta Cup 31-20 to Scotland at Murrayfield, England head coach Steve Borthwick has opted for five changes to the run-on team from last weekend in hopes of getting his side’s 2026 Six Nations campaign back on track. 

The loss to Scotland not only meant that England’s Grand Slam hopes were brought to an end, but it also revealed major shortcomings in the side, as they were comfortably second-best in the breakdown, conceding eight turnovers and winning just two. 

The Red Rose registered a 78% tackle rate compared to the Scots 88% across the 80 minutes, while their attack also came under scrutiny, having scored two tries to their opponents’ four, despite recording 56% territory and 52% possession. 

As a result, Borthwick has shaken things up for this match, with the headline change being that of Henry Pollock, who is set to make his first start for the national team. Check out our England vs Ireland prediction for all the key insights!

The Northampton forward has featured seven times off the bench for England and will start at number 8, which sees Ben Earl move to openside flanker and Tom Curry settle on the blindside. Guy Pepper and Sam Underhill have dropped to the bench. 

The other changes for England include Ollie Lawrence returning to centre with Tommy Freeman moving back to the wing in place of Tom Roebuck. Henry Arundell escaped a ban for his red card and keeps his spot in the back three with Freddie Steward at full-back. 

Skipper Maro Itoje will start the match, and it will be a big day for him as he makes his 100th appearance for the national team. He will become the ninth English player to reach the century milestone after Ben Youngs, Dan Cole, Jason Leonard, Owen Farrell, George Ford, Jamie George, Courtney Lawes and Danny Care. 

England team vs Ireland

England: 15 Freddie Steward, 14 Tommy Freeman, 13 Ollie Lawrence, 12 Fraser Dingwall, 11 Henry Arundell, 10 George Ford, 9 Alex Mitchell, 8 Henry Pollock, 7 Ben Earl, 6 Tom Curry, 5 Ollie Chessum, 4 Maro Itoje (c), 3 Joe Heyes, 2 Luke Cowan-Dickie, 1 Ellis Genge

Replacements: 16 Jamie George (vc), 17 Bevan Rodd, 18 Trevor Davison, 19 Alex Coles, 20 Guy Pepper, 21 Sam Underhill, 22 Jack van Poortvliet, 23 Marcus Smith

 

Farrell drops the axe on Prendergast for Crowley

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Meanwhile, following their 36-14 hiding at the Stade de France on the opening week of this year’s Six Nations, Ireland bounced back with a 20-13 victory over Italy at the Aviva Stadium last weekend, but most would agree, it was a far from convincing performance. 

Despite months of calls from fans to drop Sam Prendergast owing to mixed performances and evident defensive frailties, Andy Farrell maintained faith in the fly-half, but it seems that Ireland’s head coach’s patience has now worn out. 

Ahead of this weekend’s clash at Twickenham, Farrell announced that the Leinster man has been completely left out of the Matchday 23, and he has been replaced by Munster’s Jack Crowley, who had an impressive second-half showing in Dublin against Gli Azzurri last weekend. 

Up front, Farrell has made two changes and one positional shift in the loose trio, with Caelan Doris moving back to his preferred number 8, while Josh van der Flier and Tadgh Beirne come into the starting 15. Cormac Izuchukwu has been left out of the squad for this weekend. 

Tadgh Furlong makes a return to the starting lineup, and he will be joined by Dan Sheehan and Jeremy Loughman in the front row, while Joe McCarthy and James Ryan make up the lock pairing. Ireland have opted for a 5/3 split on the bench, switching up from the 6/2 they had in the first two weeks of the competition. 

Ireland team vs England:

Ireland: 15 Jamie Osborne, 14 Robert Baloucoune, 13 Garry Ringrose, 12 Stuart McCloskey, 11 James Lowe, 10 Jack Crowley, 9 Jamison Gibson-Park, 8 Caelan Doris (c), 7 Josh van der Flier, 6 Tadhg Beirne, 5 James Ryan, 4 Joe McCarthy, 3 Tadhg Furlong, 2 Dan Sheehan, 1 Jeremy Loughman

Replacements: 16 Ronan Kelleher, 17 Tom O’Toole, 18 Finlay Bealham, 19 Nick Timoney, 20 Jack Conan, 21 Craig Casey, 22 Ciaran Frawley, 23 Tommy O’Brien