How Fin Smith contributes to England’s preparation during the Six Nations
England fly half Fin Smith made his first Test start in the 2025 Six Nations win over France and despite his youth, he has no qualms speaking up.
On the latest episode of O2 Inside Line: This Rose, Smith explains that the environment in camp allows him to contribute to discussions and feel empowered.
Watch the episode
Not only does this benefit Smith in his role as fly half, a position that is one of the key leaders on the pitch regardless of caps, it benefits the team as whole.
“Ten or so years ago it would have been more a case of having to earn your stripes,” said Smith. “But now Maro is really encouraging me to speak up and say my mind.
“When you get an environment where guys with zero caps or more than 100 caps can feel confident speaking up, that’s when you really get the best out of people because you have all sides covered and everyone has a voice.
“When everyone feels empowered to speak and be free, that’s when they play their best rugby.”
Growing in confidence
The 22-year-old Northampton Saint was named Player of the Match against France and had a hand in three of England’s four tries.
Contributing to conversations around the attacking side of the game comes naturally to Smith, but he is conscious that there are times when he may have to defer to the more experienced heads in the group.
He explained: “I’m still going to grow into speaking on the experience of playing in Test matches, I haven’t done that a great deal so I’ll leave that over to the other guys.
“There is so much experience around me, guys like George Ford, Elliot Daly, Ellis Genge, Maro Itoje, Jamie George to name a few.”
Team bonding during Six Nations
As well as enabling each other to engage in tactical discussions, the players have been investing more into their relationships with their teammates.
In a tournament like the Six Nations, time is short and rugby is plentiful, meaning that friendships on and off the pitch could be overlooked if not prioritised.
However, fostering those bonds also serves a purpose on the pitch, with the players fueled by their togetherness.
As Smith said: “The way we defended for each other I think you can really tell, scrambling back for a few of their try-scoring opportunities.
“We wanted to fight for each other and there was a deeper purpose than wanting to win a game of rugby, you want each other’s respect.”
With Scotland next up at Allianz Stadium on Saturday 22 February, the team has an opportunity to build on the win over France and Smith will be hoping for another stellar performance, having been given the no.10 jersey again.
