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According to rugby specialists, the young playmaker has demonstrated why he deserves the starting position for the national team's number ten versus the All Blacks this weekend.

Fin Smith produced arguably the most impressive defensive performance we have seen from an England fly-half for quite some time.

How he fronted up by consistently making defensive hits against a physical Fijian team was impressive.

His tactical control proved exceptional - he demonstrated a perfect blend of finesse and control, and made several crucial decisions when things didn't proceed as expected in the first half.

Tackling Prowess and Strategic Leadership

His ability to settle the squad strategically and make big calls represents an aspect he has really mastered.

From my perspective, the young fly-half is England's primary playmaker and he should begin versus the All Blacks this weekend.

I think the manager the England coach views it that way as well, because Fin has demonstrated he can perform during important Test matches.

Squad Decisions Amid Rivalry

The experienced fly-half began the previous weekend versus the Wallabies due to captaincy reasons, with some aspect of that choice was to provide consistency and reward his performance during the visit of Argentina.

However, the national team's performance against Fiji was a significant step up from the performance versus the Wallabies.

Australia lost on Italian soil on Saturday, so we should avoid becoming too carried away about that victory, which should have been more comprehensive given how below par Australia performed.

The Fijian team, by contrast, proved significantly dangerous while offering a much more difficult challenge.

Long-term Potential

The young playmaker is still only 23 - projecting forward two years, alongside Ford challenging him while providing support, I think Smith will find himself in an excellent position as a player.

Marcus Smith must also be considered as an option at the right time and versus the right opposition.

He's progressing as a player and is starting to find his feet, but he also requires liberty to demonstrate his unique qualities.

Bench Impact

New Zealand introduced their impact player, who scored the decisive try defeating Scotland, and that shows the significance of having individuals who can make a real impact as substitutes.

Such type of player might represent the difference between winning the global tournament from failure.

McKenzie watches the game develop from the bench while considering about how he can make an impact when he comes on.

His decision-making and error rate have improved significantly since his early professional days.

Role Discussion

If we can get Marcus as that kind influential player, including him in the backfield could be valuable.

Nonetheless, at the moment I believe Marcus represents the solution at full-back, making it a role remaining unclaimed.

New Zealand are likely to punt to challenge the English backfield, therefore it must remain impenetrable.

This role requiring transforming into a genuine asset, in defense while regarding of the counter-attack threat.

Right now, I don't think Marcus functions as full-back at the highest level.

I struggle to identify the advantage of playing him there.

I want the ball in his hands as much as possible, though I think that should be in the front line, especially in the final quarter.

Natural Instincts

Clearly there exist a lot of parallels comparing Ford with Smith.

Fin has the ability executing right choices during tense moments - his instincts are not something you can really coach.

I remember as he received the ball at one stage within his own half appearing like it could be should they spread play.

However during these milliseconds he thought the team required to turn Fiji round as we are up on the scoreboard, therefore he punted it to pin the opponents applying pressure.

That's the sort of playmaking that wins titles while claiming World Cups.

Complete Package

He also has composure under pressure to organise the players around him, and the understanding that he mustn't always need to be the first option.

I want to see him receiving the chance demonstrating this at elite standards soon, just as we have seen the veteran do, especially at club level repeatedly consistently.

During the South American tour, the experienced fly-half similarly excelled in difficult situations, where historically you could argue occasions existed he has not quite delivered during extremely tense matches.

I believe we have playmaking options capable of performing the role, but with Fin's defensive work on top of additional qualities, establishes him as the more complete versatile performer.

Defensive System

It also means you don't have to modify your defensive system while fielding someone aggressive occupying the playmaker position, rather than someone who is a little more reserved.

You could also make a strong case favoring Ford beginning and Fin Smith entering from the bench.

There are so many factors that go on privately, but whichever way the management decide to go, this will present the opponents problems.

This hasn't consistently represented the narrative facing New Zealand, where the focus was simply on picking the right player.

On this occasion, whichever fly-half selected can put New Zealand under real pressure.

Fin's ability selecting optimal kicks while delivering enabling possible 50-20 can take pressure away from England.