England's skipper has warned that the team should steer clear of being intimidated by New Zealand's formidable reputation if they aim to secure their maiden home victory over the Kiwis in 13 years this Saturday.
Squad Boost Before Pivotal Clash
England's head coach got a welcome lift with the versatile back recovering from injury and available for selection since sustaining an injury on British & Irish Lions duty, while the full-back and the wing were also named in the 37-man squad revealed on Sunday night.
Current Form Differs with Previous Woes
England will welcome New Zealand after stretching their winning streak to nine matches with a decisive comfortable win over the Pacific Islanders, romping clear in the final quarter. Their current form stands in stark contrast from 12 months back, when England suffered six defeats in seven outings, all by narrow margins. A trio of these losses came against New Zealand—two on the 2024 summer tour and a 24-22 reverse at Twickenham after the fly-half missed late goal attempts.
The All Blacks narrowly edged out Scotland on the weekend to keep hopes of a home nations grand slam intact, and while South Africa cemented their number one spot, George has hailed New Zealand as “perhaps the top team in the world.”
Of the last 11 encounters, the team's only victory over the All Blacks was during the 2019 World Cup semi-final, and New Zealand 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 sit back in admiration of New Zealand with their history and all their world-class players,” said the experienced hooker. “It’s tempting to do that. I have done it before. We must remember we’ll be back here at this venue. We’re very proud to be playing here. We are going to do all we can to win that game.
“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 appear to raise a level when they visit Allianz Stadium. Our focus for us is is work out where we might have improved in the first half last time. But also, develop a defined gameplan which can put them under as much pressure as we are able to. By doing so, we’ll give ourselves a opportunity.
“We came under a lot of criticism last year for not coming out on the winning end of tight games and not figuring out how to win. Currently, we’re doing the complete reverse. By no means have we cracked it. But we’ve placed a big emphasis on the final phases of games and closing games out. Scoring however many tries in the final segment of the match is a sign of a good team.”
The Coach's View and Team Changes
The England coach is likely to make a several changes to his side, with skipper the lock, the flanker, and Ford all set to return to the starting lineup. Tommy Freeman and Immanuel Feyi-Waboso both took knocks against Fiji but have been included in the squad getting ready to take on New Zealand.
“We aim to challenge ourselves against the top sides and [New Zealand] are among elite squads,” said Borthwick. “We’re a young side, we’re evolving, I think we’re improving rapidly and we’re eager to learn. So I’m sure next week’s going to be a great test for us.”
The Star's Take on Progress
Ben Earl, in addition, believes that the team's current capacity to pull clear in the dying minutes of games is largely due to their triple close losses by the All Blacks the previous year. “It leaves you battle-hardened, you feel like you’ve been through battles, you’ve got the experience to learn from those losses, and they hurt at the time,” said Earl, who was named player of the game against the Fijians. “But I question to a man in the dressing room, if we’d alter our journey now, with the success that we’re sometimes enjoying? I’d be interested to know because I think they’re very, very valuable lessons.”
