Jamie George has cautioned that Steve Borthwick's side should steer clear of being overwhelmed by New Zealand's formidable reputation if they aim to achieve their maiden Twickenham victory over the visitors in 13 years this Saturday.
Team Updates Ahead of Pivotal Fixture
England's head coach got a welcome lift with the versatile back returning to fitness and in contention for selection since suffering an arm fracture on Lions duty, while Freddie Steward and the wing featured in the expanded squad revealed on Sunday night.
Recent Performances Differs with Previous Woes
The home side host the All Blacks after stretching their winning streak to nine games with a commanding 38-18 victory over the Pacific Islanders, again pulling away in the final quarter. This strong run stands in stark contrast from 12 months back, when the team suffered multiple losses in seven outings, all by narrow margins. A trio of these defeats came against New Zealand—two on the 2024 summer tour and a tight reverse at home after George Ford failed with late goal attempts.
The All Blacks just defeated Scotland on Saturday to keep hopes of a home nations grand slam alive, and though the Springboks cemented their number one ranking, George described New Zealand as “perhaps the top team in the world.”
In the previous 11 encounters, the team's sole win over the All Blacks was during the global tournament semi, and the visitors remain unbeaten in the last five fixtures at England's home ground.
George's Perspective on Playing the All Blacks
“What a lot of teams do is stand in admiration of the All Blacks with their history and all their world-class talent,” said former captain George. “It’s tempting to do that. I have done it before. We must remember we’ll be playing at Allianz Stadium. It’s an honour to be competing at home. We will do everything we can to come out on top.
“It’s vital to be at your peak. New Zealand are arguably the best side in the world right now. They’re an unbelievably fantastic team and they appear to raise a gear when they come to Allianz Stadium. Our focus for us to do is work out where we could have been better in the first half last time. But also, develop a clear gameplan which can put them under as much stress as we possibly can. If we do that, we’ll create a opportunity.
“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 exact opposite. By no means have we cracked it. But we’ve placed a big emphasis on the latter stages of games and closing games out. Scoring multiple tries in the final segment of the match is a sign of a quality team.”
Borthwick's Outlook and Team Changes
Borthwick is likely to make a several changes to his side, with captain the lock, Tom Curry, and Ford all set to be reinstated to the first XV. The wing and Immanuel Feyi-Waboso each suffered issues against the Islanders but both have been selected in the squad getting ready to take on the All Blacks.
“We want to challenge ourselves against the top sides and [New Zealand] are one of those best teams,” said 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 going to be a valuable test for us.”
Earl's Take on Progress
Ben Earl, in addition, thinks that the team's current capacity to break away in the dying minutes of matches owes much to their three narrow defeats by the All Blacks last year. “It leaves you seasoned, as if you’ve been through battles, you’ve got the experience to build on those setbacks, and they stung at the time,” said Earl, who was named player of the game 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 sometimes experiencing? I’d be interested to know because I think they’re extremely priceless lessons.”
