Jamie George has cautioned that the team should steer clear of being intimidated by New Zealand's formidable reputation if they aim to achieve their maiden home victory over the Kiwis in 13 years this Saturday.
Team Updates Ahead of Pivotal Fixture
England's head coach has received a welcome boost with the versatile back recovering from injury and in contention for his first appearance since suffering an arm fracture on Lions duty, while Freddie Steward and the wing featured in the 37-man squad revealed on Sunday night.
Recent Performances Differs with Previous Woes
The home side host New Zealand after extending their winning streak to nine games with a decisive comfortable victory over the Pacific Islanders, again pulling away in the closing stages. Their current form stands in stark contrast from a year ago, when England endured six defeats in seven outings, each by fine margins. Three of those defeats came against New Zealand—during the overseas tour and a 24-22 reverse at home after the fly-half failed with two late kicks.
New Zealand just defeated Scotland on Saturday to maintain aspirations of a home nations grand slam alive, and though the Springboks cemented their top ranking, the captain described the All Blacks as “arguably the best side in the world.”
In the previous 11 encounters, the team'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 England's home ground.
George's Perspective on Facing the Kiwis
“What a lot of teams do is stand in admiration of New Zealand 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 must remember we’ll be playing at Allianz Stadium. It’s an honour to be playing here. We are going to do all we can to win that game.
“It’s vital to be at your peak. The All Blacks are without doubt the strongest team in the world right now. They’re an unbelievably fantastic team and they appear to step up a gear when they visit Allianz Stadium. The important thing for us is is work out where we might have improved in the opening period last time. Additionally, have a clear gameplan which can apply as much pressure as we possibly can. If we do that, we’ll give ourselves a chance.
“We faced a lot of criticism last year for not coming out on the winning end of tight games and not figuring out how to win. Now, we’re doing the complete reverse. Not at all have we cracked it. But we’ve put a big emphasis on the latter stages of games and finishing strongly. Notching multiple tries in the last quarter of that game is a sign of a good team.”
Borthwick's Outlook and Team Adjustments
Borthwick is again expected to make a number of adjustments to his side, with skipper Maro Itoje, the flanker, and Ford all set to be reinstated to the first XV. The wing and Immanuel Feyi-Waboso both suffered issues against the Islanders but have been selected in the group preparing to face the All Blacks.
“We want to test our mettle against the best teams and [New Zealand] are one of those best teams,” commented Borthwick. “Our team is youthful, we’re evolving, I think we’re growing rapidly and we’re keen to learn. So I’m sure next week’s going to be a valuable test for us.”
Earl's Reflection on Progress
Ben Earl, in addition, thinks that England’s present ability to pull clear in the closing stages of matches is largely due to their three narrow defeats by New Zealand the previous year. “It leaves you seasoned, as if you’ve got the wounds, you’ve got the experience to learn from those losses, and they hurt at the time,” remarked Earl, who was awarded man of the match against Fiji. “But I wonder to a man in the dressing room, would we have changed our path now, with the joy that we’re sometimes experiencing? I’d be interested to know because I think they’re extremely priceless lessons.”
