Pollock hat-trick powers England to dominant win over Fiji

England ended a five-Test losing run with a 73-8 demolition of Fiji at Hill Dickinson Stadium in Liverpool, but the scale of the win was shaped heavily by Fiji’s indiscipline and a second-half red card for Simione Kuruvoli. Henry Pollock scored a hat-trick after the interval as England ran in 11 tries and produced their biggest victory since beating Chile 71-0 at the 2023 Rugby World Cup in Lille.

Steve Borthwick’s side had already built a 35-3 lead by halftime, with first-half tries from Marcus Smith, Jamie George, Guy Pepper, Benhard Janse van Rensburg and Seb Atkinson. Fiji had been reduced to 14 men before the break when Kuruvoli was shown a red card for kicking out at Ellis Genge, and Levani Botia also spent time in the sin bin for cynical play at the ruck. Fiji then had to play the entire second half a man down.

That numerical edge turned a hard-fought contest into a procession. England added six more tries after the break through Immanuel Feyi-Waboso, Henry Slade, Noah Caluori and Pollock’s three-score burst, while Fiji’s only try came from captain Tevita Ikanivere early in the second half. Caleb Muntz also kicked a first-half penalty for Fiji, but the visitors were penalised 12 times in total and could not stay in the contest once the cards accumulated.

The result offered relief after England’s 45-21 defeat to South Africa in Johannesburg a week earlier, a loss that had sharpened scrutiny of Borthwick’s selection, tactics and attitude. This time, England were more clinical at the set piece, more ruthless in broken play and more decisive when Fiji’s discipline slipped. England Rugby described the performance as a commanding victory built on set-piece dominance and Fiji’s ill-discipline, and the scoreline reflected that control.

There were also milestones in a line-up that had been under pressure to refresh itself. Janse van Rensburg and 19-year-old wing Noah Caluori scored on debut, Guy Pepper, Seb Atkinson and Immanuel Feyi-Waboso claimed their first Test tries, and George Kloska won his first cap. The real test now comes against stronger opposition: England face Argentina next Saturday at Estadio Único Madre de Ciudades in Santiago del Estero, where the same accuracy and composure will matter more than a lopsided finish in Liverpool.