England's skipper has warned that the team should steer clear of being intimidated by New Zealand's formidable reputation if they hope to achieve their maiden home victory over the Kiwis in 13 years this Saturday.
Squad Boost Before Pivotal Clash
England's head coach has received a welcome boost with the versatile back recovering from injury and available for his first appearance since suffering an injury on British & Irish Lions tour, while Freddie Steward and the wing were also named in the expanded squad announced on Sunday night.
Current Form Differs with Past Struggles
The home side host New Zealand after extending their unbeaten run to nine matches with a commanding comfortable win over Fiji, again pulling away in the closing stages. Their current form stands in stark contrast from 12 months back, when the team suffered six defeats in seven matches, all by narrow margins. A trio of these losses came against the Kiwis—two on the overseas tour and a tight loss at Twickenham after the fly-half failed with late goal attempts.
New Zealand just defeated Scotland on the weekend to maintain aspirations of a clean sweep intact, and while South Africa secured their top ranking, George has hailed the All Blacks as “perhaps the top team in the world.”
Of the last 11 encounters, the team's sole win over New Zealand came in the global tournament semi, and New Zealand remain unbeaten in the recent fixtures at England's home ground.
George's Perspective on Facing the Kiwis
“What a lot of teams do is sit back in admiration of New Zealand with their legacy and all their world-class talent,” said former captain George. “It’s tempting to do that. I have done it before. We must remember we’ll be back here at this venue. It’s an honour to be competing at home. We are going to do everything we can to win that game.
“It’s vital to be at your best. The All Blacks are without doubt the best side in the world at the minute. They’re an unbelievably fantastic team and they appear to step up a gear when they come to this stadium. The important thing for us is is work out where we could have been better in the opening period last time. Additionally, have a defined gameplan which can put them under as much pressure as we are able to. By doing so, we’ll create a opportunity.
“We faced a lot of criticism 12 months ago for not emerging on the winning end of tight games and not finding a way to win. Currently, we’re doing the complete reverse. By no means have we solved everything. But we’ve placed a big emphasis on the latter stages of games and closing games out. Scoring however many tries in the final segment of that game is a mark of a quality team.”
Borthwick's Outlook and Squad Changes
Borthwick is likely to make a several changes to his side, with skipper Maro Itoje, Tom Curry, and the fly-half all expected to be reinstated to the starting lineup. The wing and the newcomer each suffered issues against the Islanders but both have been selected in the group preparing to take on the All Blacks.
“We want to challenge ourselves against the top sides and [New Zealand] are one of those elite squads,” commented the head coach. “Our team is youthful, we’re evolving, I think we’re improving quickly and we’re keen to learn. So I’m sure the upcoming going to be a valuable assessment for us.”
Earl's Reflection on Growth
Ben Earl, meanwhile, thinks that England’s present ability to pull clear in the closing stages of games is largely due to their triple close losses by the All Blacks the previous year. “You feel seasoned, you feel like you’ve been through battles, you’ve developed the experience to learn from those losses, and they hurt at the time,” said Earl, who was named man of the match against Fiji. “But I wonder to a man in the changing room, if we’d alter our path now, with the joy that we’re now experiencing? I’d be curious to know because I think they’re extremely priceless lessons.”
