England's skipper has warned that the team must avoid being intimidated by the All Blacks' legendary status if they aim to achieve their first home victory over the visitors in 13 years this Saturday.
Team Updates Before Crucial Clash
England's head coach has received a timely boost with the versatile back returning to fitness and available for his first appearance since sustaining an injury on British & Irish Lions duty, while Freddie Steward and the wing were also named in the expanded squad revealed on Sunday night.
Current Form Contrasts with Past Struggles
The home side host New Zealand after extending their winning streak to nine matches with a commanding comfortable win over the Pacific Islanders, romping clear in the final quarter. This strong run stands in stark contrast from 12 months back, when England endured multiple losses in seven outings, all by narrow margins. A trio of these losses were inflicted by New Zealand—two on the 2024 summer tour and a 24-22 reverse at Twickenham after the fly-half missed two late kicks.
New Zealand narrowly edged out the Scots on Saturday to maintain hopes of a home nations grand slam alive, and though the Springboks cemented their number one ranking, George described New Zealand as “arguably the best side in the world.”
In the previous 11 encounters, the team's only victory over New Zealand was during the global tournament semi, and the visitors have not been beaten in the recent clashes at England's home ground.
George's Perspective on Facing the Kiwis
“Many sides tend to is sit back in admiration of New Zealand with their history and all their world-class players,” said former captain George. “It’s easy to do that. I’ve probably done it in the past. We’ve also got to be aware we’ll be playing at Allianz Stadium. We’re very proud to be competing at home. We will do everything we can to come out on top.
“You have to be at your peak. The All Blacks are without doubt the strongest team in the world at the minute. They are a exceptionally skilled squad and they seem to step up 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, have a defined gameplan which can put them under as much pressure as we possibly can. By doing so, we’ll give ourselves a chance.
“We faced a lot of criticism 12 months ago for not coming out on the winning end of close contests and not figuring out how to win. Currently, we’re doing the complete reverse. By no means have we cracked it. But we’ve put a strong focus on the latter stages of games and closing games out. Notching multiple tries in the last quarter of that game is a sign of a quality team.”
Borthwick's Outlook and Squad Adjustments
The England coach is likely to make a number of changes to his side, with captain Maro Itoje, Tom Curry, and Ford all set to be reinstated to the first XV. The wing and Immanuel Feyi-Waboso both took knocks against Fiji but have been selected in the squad getting ready to take on New Zealand.
“We aim to challenge ourselves against the best teams and [New Zealand] are among elite squads,” commented the head coach. “Our team is youthful, we’re developing, I think we’re improving rapidly and we’re keen to learn. So I’m sure the upcoming going to be a great test for us.”
Earl's Take on Progress
Ben Earl, in addition, believes that England’s present ability to break away in the dying minutes of games owes much to their triple close losses by the All Blacks the previous year. “It leaves you seasoned, you feel like you’ve got the wounds, you’ve developed the scar tissue to build on those losses, and they stung at the time,” said Earl, who was awarded man of the match against the Fijians. “But I question to a man in the changing room, if we’d alter our path now, with the success that we’re now experiencing? I’d be interested to know because I think they’re extremely priceless lessons.”
