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Six Nations | Group Stage
Mar 9, 2019 at 4.45pm UK
 
England
57-14
Italy
George (8'), May (15'), Tuilagi (21', 47'), Shields (32', 79'), Kruis (64'), Robson (68')
FT
Allan (12'), Morisi (54')

Cokanasiga, Tuilagi, Te'o: How England's heavyweight backline fared versus Italy

Cokanasiga, Tuilagi, Te'o: How England's heavyweight backline fared versus Italy
© Reuters
Tuilagi was at his explosive best in England's emphatic win.

Ben Te'o and Joe Cokanasiga were promoted to the England starting XV for Saturday's Guinness Six Nations win over Italy at Twickenham, alongside Manu Tuilagi.

The trio's presence gave England their heaviest ever backline.

Here Press Association Sport assesses the heavyweight aces' performances in detail.

Joe Cokanasiga

Joe Cokanasiga
Joe Cokanasiga was destructive with ball in hand but exposed in defence (Adam Davy/PA)

The Bath wing showed his best and worst sides in the opening 14 minutes. First he leapt to catch Owen Farrell's cross-field kick and offloaded inside to Tom Curry. The flanker could not hold the pass. Cokanasiga then ran powerfully down his wing, but then the 6ft 4ins, 18 stones winger offered little resistance in defence as Tommaso Allan evaded him all too easily. He showed flashes thereafter, his one-handed carrying showing he was always looking to offload.

Manu Tuilagi

Tuilagi made Italy look like schoolboys playing against men at times. The Leicester centre showed power and pace in charging through Angelo Esposito's attempted tackle and brushing off Luca Morisi to score England's third try. He caused havoc at a halfway breakdown before subtly floating the inside pass for Brad Shields' score and he broke tackles at will. He claimed a second try early in the second half and was replaced by Henry Slade with 18 minutes to go and Scotland next week in mind.

Ben Te'o

Joe Cokanasiga, Manu Tuilagi and Ben Te'o
Ben Te'o, right, did the simple stuff to allow team-mates Joe Cokanasiga, left, and Manu Tuilagi, centre, to thrive (Adam Davy/PA)

In for midfield playmaker Henry Slade, Te'o had a quieter first half than Tuilagi and Cokanasiga. He did the simple stuff to allow his team-mates to shine. The Worcester centre offers a reassuringly reliable presence in the England midfield. Jones knows what he does and how he does it. Whether that is enough for Te'o to reclaim a regular starting spot remains to be seen.

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England's Eddie Jones pictured on February 21, 2019
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