Refreshed Maro Itoje leads from the front as England deliver performance they needed

Moses Itoje must wonder what all the fuss was about. The newborn son of Maro and his wife had his first taste of Twickenham on Sunday afternoon, perhaps the youngest of the nearly 82,000-strong crowd at the Allianz Stadium that watched England rack up a record score against Australiia. For a player who was supposed to be resting and recharging after a gruelling physical and emotional year, one might question the wisdom of welcoming a child so close to the autumn opener. “My sleep is okay actually,” Itoje chuckled this week from the safety of England’s training base. “My wife's sleep is a bit more challenging, but she's doing a good job.” No doubt the England captain played like a man enjoying the restorative benefits of a break. It had been a bold call to allow Itoje the summer off given the juncture at which he exited, having presided over a worst-ever Six Nations. But here was a call made with long-term goals in mind . As captain of Saracens, England and the British and Irish Lions, the 32-year-old lock has been afforded precious little time off across more than a decade at Test level – indeed, his durability has counted against him, with no major injuries of which to speak. How, then, did it feel to be back pulling on an England shirt for the first time in months? “I’ve absolutely loved it. Sometimes when you have time away – and I do think it was a good thing for me personally – it just lights the fire in you a little bit. It just makes you more appreciative of the opportunity and the platform that you have when you play for England. It is something that I don’t take for granted. As many games as I have left, I want to make the absolute most of it.” Itoje played with that intent. Like a nosy (and noisy) neighbour peering over the fence, he timed his hassling and harrying of Ryan Lonergan superbly – getting his hands to an early box kick and up in the face of the Wallabies scrum half repeatedly. England’s captain topped the tackle charts with 16, plenty of them made before the interval in an outstanding defensive effort; at half-time, the hosts had made 75 tackles and missed just two. With plenty of focus on the battle at the breakdown, Australia were simply beaten up. Itoje and Ben Curry – influential on his return to Test duty – led the way, largely keeping their discipline as they pilfered and pawed, bar one over-balance from the England skipper. Poor Declan Meredith, the inexperienced Australia fly half, had little ball passed his way; when it did arrive, it was wobbly, and Meredith rather had the look of a seasick sailor treading an unsteady deck. “I guess they made every ruck a mess,” the captain Harry Wilson admitted. One botched late lineout where Itoje gifted Australia a try will frustrate a man of exacting standards, though the contrast between England’s last home outing against Ireland could not have been clearer. “Obviously that was a disappointing game, not only because of the outcomes but more the performance,” Itoje recalled. “That was not the performance that we wanted to put out there.” With a lift in England’s level came a lift in the volume. “At times, the noise was unbearable,” Itoje, a man used to the wails of baby Moses, remarked. On Friday, Itoje had called for his side to set the tone for the autumn; they delivered on that message. It felt all the more important that he led from the front given the claims of disharmony in the camp that had accompanied the build-up to this game. After those reports had emerged, the captain and his deputies had summoned the squad for a summit at which they underlined the need to show their faith in their head coach. Vice-captain Jamie George was notably fired up after crossing for England’s first try from a maul. Borthwick is not one to beam but one could feel his pride in the reaction he received. “We have full support of Steve,” his captain stressed. “It is never nice getting criticism but criticism is part of the game. If we were scared of criticism we wouldn’t be here. “Often too much criticism is attached to the coach whereas no matter how well Steve coaches us, we as players are the ones on the field. We as players are the ones who have to perform. There have been times when we haven’t quite done that which has put a bit of pressure on him. I am delighted that we got the win. He is a world-class coach and we are lucky to have him. “I think we just want to show the growth of this team. We have the opportunity in these next games today and to follow to show the growth and where we want to go. That opportunity is right in front of us and it is our responsibility as players to take a hold of that.”