England's skipper has warned that Steve Borthwick's side must avoid being overwhelmed by New Zealand's formidable reputation if they hope to achieve their first Twickenham triumph over the visitors in 13 years this Saturday.
Squad Boost Before Crucial Clash
Steve Borthwick has received a timely lift with the versatile back recovering from injury and in contention for selection since sustaining an injury on British & Irish Lions duty, while the full-back and Tom Roebuck were also named in the 37-man squad revealed on the weekend.
Current Form Differs with Past Struggles
The home side host New Zealand after extending their winning streak to nine matches with a decisive 38-18 victory over Fiji, again pulling away in the closing stages. This strong run stands in stark contrast from 12 months back, when England endured six defeats in seven outings, each by fine margins. A trio of these losses were inflicted by New Zealand—during the 2024 summer tour and a 24-22 reverse at home after the fly-half missed late goal attempts.
New Zealand narrowly edged out the Scots on Saturday to keep hopes of a clean sweep intact, and while South Africa cemented their number one ranking, the captain has hailed New Zealand as “arguably the top team in the world.”
Of the last 11 encounters, the team's sole win over New Zealand was during the global tournament semi, and New Zealand have not been beaten in the recent fixtures at Twickenham.
George's Insight on Playing the Kiwis
“What a lot of teams do is sit back in admiration of the All Blacks with their legacy and all their world-class players,” stated former captain George. “It’s easy to do that. I have done it in the past. We’ve also got to be aware we’ll be back here at this venue. It’s an honour to be playing here. We will do all we can to come out on top.
“It’s vital to be at your peak. New Zealand are arguably the strongest team in the world right now. They’re an unbelievably fantastic squad and they seem to raise a level when they visit this stadium. The important thing for us is is identify where we could have been better in the first half this week. But also, develop a defined strategy which can apply as much pressure as we are able to. If we do that, we’ll give ourselves a chance.
“We faced a bit of heat last year for not emerging on the winning end of close contests and not finding a way to win. Now, we’re doing the complete reverse. Not at all have we solved everything. But we’ve placed a big emphasis on the latter stages of games and finishing strongly. Notching however many tries in the last quarter of that game is a mark of a quality team.”
The Coach's View and Squad Adjustments
Borthwick is again expected to make a number of adjustments to his side, with skipper Maro Itoje, the flanker, and the fly-half all set to be reinstated to the first XV. The wing and Immanuel Feyi-Waboso both took knocks against the Islanders but both have been included in the group getting ready to take on New Zealand.
“We want to test our mettle against the best teams and [New Zealand] are among elite squads,” said the head coach. “Our team is youthful, we’re evolving, I think we’re improving rapidly and we’re eager to learn. So I’m sure next week’s will be a valuable test for us.”
The Star's Reflection on Progress
Ben Earl, in addition, thinks that the team's current ability to pull clear in the dying minutes of matches owes much to their three narrow defeats by the All Blacks the previous year. “It leaves you battle-hardened, you feel like you’ve got the wounds, you’ve got the scar tissue to learn from those losses, and they hurt at the time,” said the back-rower, who was named player of the game against Fiji. “But I wonder among the squad in the changing room, if we’d alter our journey now, with the joy that we’re now enjoying? I’d be interested to know because I think they’re very, very priceless lessons.”
