Eleven-try England thrash sorry Fiji to end losing run

Image source, Getty Images Image caption, Henry Pollock and Immanuel Feyi-Waboso were among the try-scorers as England ran rampant By Mike Henson BBC Sport rugby union news reporter Published 1 hour ago Nations Championship - round two Fiji (3) 8 Try: Ikanivere, Pen: Muntz England (35) 73 Tries: M Smith, George, Pepper, Janse van Rensburg, Atkinson, Feyi-Waboso, Pollock (3), Slade, Caluori Cons: F Smith (9) Replacement Henry Pollock scored a second-half hat-trick as England cruised to victory and ended a five-Test losing streak against an ill-disciplined and disjointed Fiji in Liverpool. Playing against 14 men for half the match after scrum-half Simione Kuruvoli was shown a straight red for a kick out at Ellis Genge, England raced away to their largest ever win over Fiji. Immanuel Feyi-Waboso's acrobatic finish down the left wing and Pollock's treble, all celebrated in style, brought loud cheers from the Hill Dickinson Stadium's 50,209-strong crowd after the break. Elsewhere Bristol's South African-born centre Benhard Janse van Rensburg and Saracens' teenage wing sensation Noah Caluori made try-scoring Test debuts from the bench. England were as comprehensive winners as the scoreline suggested, but the value of the victory has to be assessed in the context of a rabble of a performance from Fiji. The Pacific Islanders famously beat England at Twickenham in August 2023, and came close to doing so again when the teams met in the Rugby World Cup quarter-finals a few weeks later. When they met in the autumn, in the midst of an England winning streak, Fiji had been within three points on the hour mark, before fading to a 38-18 loss. This version however, never looked like having the consistency and cohesion to condemn England to a sixth successive Test defeat – a run of form which would have been their worst in 20 years. 'We let the shackles off' - reaction after England score 11 tries v 14-man Fiji England take advantage of poor defence and fast track Image source, Getty Images Image caption, Caluori, who finished joint top try-scorer in the Prem this season, crossed for his first England try After defeat by South Africa last weekend, England emerged with impetus and intent, apparently determined to chance their arm. Fin Smith had already attempted a crossfield kick to Northampton team-mate Tommy Freeman from an early penalty, only to be called back by referee Hollie Davidson for going too quickly. Fortune favoured the England fly-half's brave play a few minutes later. Once again Smith aimed a punt at Freeman. It bounced over the wing's head and seemed to be heading for touch, only to bounce off the corner flag and back in-field to allow Marcus Smith to pounce for the opening try. Last weekend, South Africa's powerful ground game had slowed England's ruck speed, pouring sludge in their attacking gears. Fiji's back row, containing the 30-plus trio of Peceli Yato, Lekima Tagitagivalu and Levani Botia, could not make such a great nuisance of themselves