England's captain Warns Team Against Stand in Awe at New Zealand's Aura
Jamie George has cautioned that the team must avoid being overwhelmed by New Zealand's formidable reputation if they aim to achieve their first home triumph over the visitors in over a decade this weekend.
Team Updates Ahead of Crucial Clash
Steve Borthwick has received a welcome boost with the versatile back recovering from injury and available for his first appearance since suffering an injury on Lions tour, while the full-back and the wing featured in the 37-man squad revealed on Sunday night.
Recent Performances Differs with Previous Woes
England host New Zealand after extending their winning streak to nine games with a commanding comfortable victory over the Pacific Islanders, romping clear in the closing stages. Their current form stands in stark contrast from 12 months back, when England suffered six defeats in seven matches, 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 Twickenham after George Ford missed late goal attempts.
New Zealand just defeated the Scots on Saturday to keep hopes of a home nations grand slam alive, and while South Africa secured their top spot, George described New Zealand as “arguably the best side in the world.”
Of the last 11 meetings, the team's only victory over New Zealand was during the global tournament semi, and New Zealand remain unbeaten in the last five fixtures at Twickenham.
The Captain's Insight on Playing the All Blacks
“What a lot of teams do is sit back in admiration of the All Blacks with their history and all their world-class players,” said the experienced hooker. “It’s easy to do that. I’ve probably done it in the past. We must remember we’ll be playing at this venue. It’s an honour to be playing here. We are going to do everything we can to win that game.
“You have to be at your peak. 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 gear when they visit Allianz Stadium. The important thing for us is is work out where we might have improved in the first half last time. Additionally, develop a defined strategy which can apply as much stress as we are able to. By doing so, we’ll give ourselves a chance.
“We came under a lot of criticism 12 months ago for not emerging on the winning end of close contests and not figuring out how to win. Currently, we’re doing the exact opposite. By no means have we cracked it. But we’ve placed a big emphasis on the latter stages of games and finishing strongly. Notching multiple tries in the last quarter of the match is a sign of a quality team.”
The Coach's View and Squad Adjustments
The England coach is again expected to make a number of changes to his lineup, with captain Maro Itoje, Tom Curry, and Ford all expected to return to the first XV. Tommy Freeman and Immanuel Feyi-Waboso each took knocks against Fiji but both have been selected in the group getting ready to take on the All Blacks.
“We want to challenge ourselves against the best teams and [New Zealand] are among best teams,” commented the head coach. “We’re a young side, we’re developing, I think we’re improving rapidly and we’re keen to learn. So I’m sure next week’s will be a great test for us.”
The Star's Take on Progress
Ben Earl, meanwhile, believes that the team's current capacity to pull clear in the closing stages of matches owes much to their triple close losses by the All Blacks last year. “You feel battle-hardened, you feel like you’ve been through battles, you’ve developed the experience to build on those setbacks, and they hurt at the time,” remarked the back-rower, who was awarded man of the match against Fiji. “But I question among the squad in the dressing room, if we’d alter our journey now, with the success that we’re sometimes experiencing? I’d be curious to know because I think they’re very, very priceless lessons.”