A potential banana skin avoided and a victory secured was as much as could be made from England’s last game of the year. In all honesty it was a procession even if Storm Bert threatened to blow Steve Borthwick’s battle-weary men off course.

The RFU will review the team's performance in January after a disappointing calendar year saw them lose five matches in a row

Most onlookers are straining their eyes to see meaningful progress from England. With a sobering record of five wins and seven losses in 2024 for Steve Borthwick’s team, it is easy to understand the pessimism.

What sort of England team will turn up against Japan? Steve Borthwick could not have been more emphatic in his selection, at least. In making just two changes to the side to face Eddie Jones’s team, with the return of senior players George Furbank and Tom Curry to the starting XV,