Jamie George has cautioned that the team should steer clear of being intimidated by New Zealand's formidable reputation if they hope to secure their maiden Twickenham triumph over the Kiwis in over a decade this Saturday.
Team Updates Before Crucial Clash
England's head coach has received a timely boost with the versatile back recovering from injury and available for his first appearance since sustaining an injury on British & Irish Lions tour, while the full-back and Tom Roebuck featured in the 37-man group revealed on the weekend.
Current Form Differs with Previous Woes
The home side will welcome New Zealand after extending their winning streak to nine matches with a commanding 38-18 victory over the Pacific Islanders, again pulling away in the final quarter. This strong run marks a dramatic shift from 12 months back, when the team endured six defeats in seven matches, each by fine margins. A trio of these defeats were inflicted by the Kiwis—during the 2024 summer tour and a 24-22 reverse at Twickenham after the fly-half missed late goal attempts.
New Zealand just defeated Scotland on Saturday to keep aspirations of a home nations grand slam alive, and while South Africa cemented their top spot, the captain has hailed New Zealand as “perhaps the top team in the world.”
In the previous 11 encounters, England's sole win over New Zealand came in the global tournament semi, and the visitors have not been beaten in the last five clashes at Twickenham.
The Captain's Insight on Facing 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 talent,” said former captain George. “It’s tempting to do that. I have done it before. We’ve also got to be aware we’ll be playing at Allianz Stadium. It’s an honour to be competing at home. We are going to do everything we can to come out on top.
“It’s vital to be at your peak. New Zealand are without doubt the best side in the world at the minute. They are a exceptionally skilled team and they seem to step up a gear when they come to Allianz Stadium. Our focus for us is is identify where we could have been better in the first half this week. But also, have a clear strategy which can apply as much stress as we are able to. By doing so, we’ll create a chance.
“We came under a bit of heat 12 months ago for not emerging on the right side of close contests and not figuring out how to win. Now, we’re doing the complete reverse. By no means have we cracked it. But we’ve placed a strong focus on the latter stages of games and finishing strongly. Notching multiple tries in the last quarter of the match is a sign of a good team.”
The Coach's View and Squad Changes
Borthwick is likely to make a several changes to his side, with captain the lock, the flanker, and the fly-half all set to return to the starting lineup. The wing and Immanuel Feyi-Waboso each took knocks against Fiji but both have been selected in the squad getting ready to take on New Zealand.
“We aim to challenge ourselves against the top sides and [New Zealand] are among elite squads,” commented Borthwick. “We’re a young side, we’re evolving, I think we’re growing quickly and we’re eager to learn. So I’m sure the upcoming going to be a great test for us.”
The Star's Take on Growth
The number eight, meanwhile, believes that England’s present ability to pull clear in the closing stages of games owes much to their triple close losses by New Zealand the previous year. “You feel battle-hardened, you feel like you’ve been through battles, you’ve developed the experience to learn from those losses, and they stung at the time,” said the back-rower, who was named man of the match against the Fijians. “But I question to a man in the changing room, if we’d alter our journey now, with the success that we’re now experiencing? I’d be interested to know because I think they’re very, very priceless lessons.”
