Jamie George has cautioned that Steve Borthwick's side must avoid being intimidated by New Zealand's formidable reputation if they hope to achieve their first Twickenham triumph over the visitors in 13 years this weekend.
Team Updates Before Pivotal Fixture
Steve Borthwick got a welcome lift with the versatile back recovering from injury and in contention for his first appearance since suffering an arm fracture on Lions tour, while Freddie Steward and the wing featured in the 37-man group revealed on the weekend.
Current Form Differs with Past Struggles
England host New Zealand after extending their unbeaten run to nine matches with a decisive comfortable victory over the Pacific Islanders, again pulling away in the closing stages. This strong run stands in stark contrast from 12 months back, when the team endured six defeats in seven outings, each by fine margins. Three of those defeats were inflicted by New Zealand—during the overseas tour and a tight loss at Twickenham after the fly-half failed with two late kicks.
The All Blacks narrowly edged out Scotland on Saturday to keep aspirations of a clean sweep intact, and while the Springboks cemented their top spot, the captain has hailed New Zealand as “perhaps the best side in the world.”
Of the last 11 encounters, the team's sole win over New Zealand was during the global tournament semi, and New Zealand remain unbeaten in the recent fixtures at England's home ground.
George's Insight on Facing the All Blacks
“Many sides tend to is sit back in admiration of the All Blacks with their history and all their world-class players,” stated the experienced hooker. “It’s easy to do that. I have done it before. We must remember we’ll be back here at Allianz Stadium. It’s an honour to be competing at home. We will do all we can to come out on top.
“It’s vital to be at your peak. New Zealand are arguably the strongest team in the world at the minute. They are a unbelievably fantastic squad and they appear to step up a level when they visit this stadium. The important thing for us to do is work out where we might have improved in the opening period this week. But also, have a defined strategy which can apply as much stress as we possibly can. If we do that, we’ll create a chance.
“We faced a bit of heat last year for not emerging on the right side 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 put a big emphasis on the latter stages of games and finishing strongly. Scoring multiple tries in the last quarter of that game is a mark of a quality team.”
The Coach's Outlook and Squad Adjustments
The England coach is likely to make a several changes to his side, with captain Maro Itoje, Tom Curry, and the fly-half all set to return to the starting lineup. 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 aim to challenge ourselves against the top sides and [New Zealand] are among best teams,” said the head coach. “We’re a young side, we’re developing, I think we’re growing quickly and we’re eager to learn. So I’m sure the upcoming going to be a great assessment for us.”
Earl's Reflection on Growth
Ben Earl, meanwhile, believes that England’s current capacity to break away in the dying minutes of matches owes much to their triple close losses by New Zealand last year. “It leaves you battle-hardened, you feel like you’ve got the wounds, you’ve developed the experience to learn from those setbacks, and they hurt at the time,” remarked the back-rower, who was named man of the match against Fiji. “But I question to a man in the dressing room, would we have changed our path now, with the joy that we’re now experiencing? I’d be interested to know because I think they’re very, very priceless lessons.”
