England's skipper has warned that the team should steer clear of being intimidated by the All Blacks' legendary status if they hope to achieve their maiden home victory over the visitors in 13 years this weekend.
Team Updates Before Pivotal Clash
Steve Borthwick has received a welcome boost with the versatile back recovering from injury and in contention for selection since suffering an arm fracture on Lions tour, while the full-back and the wing featured in the expanded group announced on the weekend.
Current Form Differs with Previous Woes
The home side will welcome the All Blacks after stretching their unbeaten run to nine matches with a commanding 38-18 win over Fiji, again pulling away in the closing stages. This strong run stands in stark contrast from a year ago, when England suffered six defeats in seven matches, each by fine margins. Three of those losses were inflicted by the Kiwis—two on the overseas tour and a tight reverse at home after the fly-half missed two late kicks.
New Zealand narrowly edged out the Scots on Saturday to keep hopes of a home nations grand slam intact, and while the Springboks cemented their number one ranking, George has hailed New Zealand as “perhaps the best side in the world.”
In the previous 11 meetings, England's sole win over New Zealand was during the 2019 World Cup semi-final, and the visitors have not been beaten in the last five clashes at Twickenham.
George's Perspective on Facing the Kiwis
“What a lot of teams do is stand in admiration of New Zealand with their history and all their world-class talent,” said former captain George. “It’s easy to do that. I have done it before. We’ve also got to be aware we’ll be playing at Allianz Stadium. It’s an honour to be playing here. We are going to do everything we can to come out on top.
“It’s vital to be at your peak. The All Blacks are arguably the strongest team in the world right now. They’re an exceptionally skilled team and they appear to raise a level when they visit this stadium. The important thing for us to do is identify where we could have been better in the first half last time. Additionally, develop a defined strategy 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 last year for not emerging on the winning end of close contests and not figuring out how to win. Currently, we’re doing the complete reverse. Not at all 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 the match is a sign of a good team.”
The Coach's Outlook and Squad Adjustments
Borthwick is likely to make a several adjustments to his lineup, with skipper the lock, Tom Curry, and Ford all set to be reinstated to the starting lineup. Tommy Freeman and the newcomer each took knocks against the Islanders but both have been selected in the group getting ready to take on the All Blacks.
“We aim to test our mettle against the best teams and [New Zealand] are among elite squads,” said the head coach. “We’re a young side, we’re developing, I think we’re improving rapidly and we’re eager to learn. So I’m sure the upcoming will be a valuable test for us.”
Earl's Reflection on Progress
Ben Earl, meanwhile, thinks that the team's present ability to pull clear in the closing stages of matches owes much to their three narrow defeats by the All Blacks last year. “You feel seasoned, you feel like you’ve got the wounds, you’ve developed the scar tissue to learn from those setbacks, and they hurt at the time,” said the back-rower, who was named player of the game 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 sometimes experiencing? I’d be interested to know because I think they’re extremely priceless lessons.”
