Jamie George has cautioned that the team should steer clear of being intimidated by the All Blacks' legendary status if they hope to secure their maiden Twickenham triumph over the visitors in over a decade this Saturday.
Team Updates Before Pivotal Clash
England's head coach got a welcome lift with the versatile back recovering from injury and in contention for selection since sustaining an arm fracture on British & Irish Lions duty, while Freddie Steward and Tom Roebuck were also named in the 37-man group announced on the weekend.
Current Form Differs with Previous Woes
The home side will welcome New Zealand after extending their unbeaten run to nine matches with a decisive 38-18 win over Fiji, romping clear in the closing stages. This strong run stands in stark contrast from a year ago, when the team endured multiple losses in seven matches, each by fine margins. A trio of these defeats were inflicted by New Zealand—two on the overseas tour and a 24-22 loss at Twickenham after George Ford missed late goal attempts.
New Zealand just defeated Scotland on the weekend to maintain aspirations of a clean sweep alive, and though South Africa cemented their number one ranking, George described the All Blacks as “perhaps the top team in the world.”
Of the last 11 meetings, the team's sole win over New Zealand came in the global tournament semi, and the visitors have not been beaten in the recent fixtures at England's home ground.
The Captain's Insight on Playing the All Blacks
“What a lot of teams do is stand in awe of the All Blacks with their history and all their incredible players,” said the experienced hooker. “It’s easy to do that. I’ve probably done it before. We’ve also got to be aware we’ll be back here at this venue. It’s an honour to be competing at home. We will do everything we can to win that game.
“You have to be at your best. New Zealand are without doubt the best side in the world at the minute. They’re an exceptionally skilled team and they appear to step up a level when they visit this stadium. The important thing for us is is work out where we could have been better in the first half last time. Additionally, have a clear gameplan which can apply as much pressure as we are able to. By doing so, we’ll give ourselves a opportunity.
“We faced a bit of heat 12 months ago for not coming out on the right side of tight games and not figuring out how to win. Currently, we’re doing the complete reverse. By no means have we solved everything. But we’ve put a strong focus on the final phases of games and closing games out. Scoring however many tries in the last quarter of that game is a mark of a good team.”
Borthwick's View and Squad Adjustments
Borthwick is likely to make a several adjustments to his side, with skipper the lock, Tom Curry, and Ford all expected to be reinstated to the first XV. Tommy Freeman and the newcomer both took knocks against Fiji but both have been included in the squad getting ready to take on New Zealand.
“We want to test our mettle against the best teams and [New Zealand] are one of those elite squads,” commented the head coach. “Our team is youthful, we’re evolving, I think we’re growing quickly and we’re keen to learn. So I’m sure the upcoming going to be a great assessment for us.”
The Star's Take on Growth
The number eight, meanwhile, thinks that England’s present capacity to break away in the closing stages of matches is largely due to their three narrow defeats by the All Blacks the previous year. “It leaves you seasoned, you feel like you’ve got the wounds, you’ve developed the scar tissue to learn from those losses, and they stung at the time,” remarked Earl, who was named player of the game against the Fijians. “But I question to a man in the changing room, if we’d alter our journey now, with the joy that we’re sometimes experiencing? I’d be interested to know because I think they’re extremely priceless lessons.”
