England's skipper has warned that Steve Borthwick's side must avoid being intimidated by New Zealand's formidable reputation if they hope to achieve their first Twickenham victory over the Kiwis in over a decade this weekend.
Squad Boost Before Crucial Fixture
Steve Borthwick got a timely lift with the versatile back recovering from injury and available for his first appearance since suffering an injury on Lions duty, while Freddie Steward and Tom Roebuck featured in the expanded squad announced on Sunday night.
Current Form Contrasts with Previous Woes
The home side will welcome the All Blacks after stretching their winning streak to nine games with a decisive 38-18 win over Fiji, again pulling away in the final quarter. Their current form stands in stark contrast from 12 months back, when England suffered multiple losses in seven outings, each by fine margins. A trio of these losses came against New Zealand—during the overseas tour and a tight loss at Twickenham after George Ford failed with late goal attempts.
New Zealand narrowly edged out the Scots on Saturday to maintain aspirations of a home nations grand slam alive, and while the Springboks secured their number one ranking, the captain described the All Blacks as “perhaps the top team in the world.”
In the previous 11 meetings, England's sole win over New Zealand was during the 2019 World Cup semi-final, and the visitors have not been beaten in the recent clashes at Twickenham.
George's Perspective on Facing the All Blacks
“What a lot of teams do is stand in awe of New Zealand with their legacy and all their world-class talent,” said the experienced hooker. “It’s easy to do that. I have done it before. We’ve also got to be aware we’ll be back here at Allianz Stadium. We’re very proud to be competing at home. We will do all we can to win that game.
“You have to be at your peak. The All Blacks are arguably the strongest team in the world at the minute. They’re an unbelievably fantastic team and they appear to raise a level when they come to Allianz Stadium. The important thing for us is is work out where we might have improved in the first half last time. But also, have a defined gameplan which can apply as much pressure as we are able to. By doing so, we’ll give ourselves a chance.
“We came under a lot of criticism last year for not coming out 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 cracked it. But we’ve put a strong focus on the final phases of games and finishing strongly. Notching multiple tries in the last quarter of that game is a mark of a quality team.”
The Coach's Outlook and Squad Changes
The England coach is again expected to make a several changes to his side, with skipper Maro Itoje, the flanker, and Ford all set to be reinstated to the first XV. Tommy Freeman and Immanuel Feyi-Waboso each took knocks against the Islanders but both have been selected in the squad getting ready to face New Zealand.
“We want to test our mettle against the top sides and [New Zealand] are among best teams,” commented Borthwick. “We’re a young side, we’re evolving, I think we’re growing quickly and we’re keen to learn. So I’m sure next week’s going to be a great assessment for us.”
The Star's Reflection on Growth
Ben Earl, in addition, believes that England’s current capacity to pull clear in the closing stages of games owes much to their triple close losses by the All Blacks the previous year. “It leaves you seasoned, as if 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 awarded player of the game against the Fijians. “But I wonder to a man in the dressing room, would we have changed our path now, with the success that we’re now enjoying? I’d be interested to know because I think they’re extremely priceless lessons.”
