Jamie George has cautioned that Steve Borthwick's side should steer clear of being intimidated by New Zealand's formidable reputation if they aim to secure their first home triumph over the Kiwis in over a decade this weekend.
Team Updates Ahead of Pivotal Clash
Steve Borthwick has received a timely boost with Elliot Daly returning to fitness and available for his first appearance since suffering an arm fracture on British & Irish Lions duty, while Freddie Steward and Tom Roebuck were also named in the expanded group revealed on the weekend.
Current Form Differs with Previous Woes
The home side will welcome the All Blacks after stretching their winning streak to nine matches with a decisive 38-18 win over Fiji, romping clear in the closing stages. Their current form stands in stark contrast from 12 months back, when the team suffered multiple losses in seven matches, all by narrow margins. Three of those losses came against the Kiwis—during the overseas tour and a tight loss at home after the fly-half missed two late kicks.
New Zealand narrowly edged out the Scots on Saturday to maintain aspirations of a home nations grand slam alive, and though South Africa secured their number one ranking, the captain described New Zealand as “perhaps the top team in the world.”
Of the last 11 encounters, England's sole win over New Zealand was during the 2019 World Cup semi-final, and the visitors have not been beaten in the recent clashes at Twickenham.
George's Perspective on Facing the Kiwis
“Many sides tend to is stand in awe of New Zealand with their history and all their world-class talent,” said former captain George. “It’s easy to do that. I’ve probably done it in the past. We must remember we’ll be playing at Allianz Stadium. We’re very proud to be competing at home. We are going to do everything we can to win that game.
“You have to be at your peak. New Zealand are arguably the strongest team in the world at the minute. They’re an unbelievably fantastic team and they seem to raise a gear when they visit Allianz Stadium. Our focus for us is is identify where we could have been better in the first half last time. But also, have a clear strategy which can put them under as much stress as we are able to. If we do that, we’ll create a opportunity.
“We faced a lot of criticism last year for not coming out on the right side of close contests and not figuring out how to win. Now, we’re doing the complete reverse. By no means have we solved everything. But we’ve put a big emphasis on the latter stages of games and closing games out. Notching however many tries in the last quarter of that game is a sign of a good team.”
The Coach's View and Squad Changes
Borthwick is again expected to make a several changes to his side, with captain the lock, Tom Curry, and the fly-half all expected to be reinstated to the starting lineup. The wing and the newcomer both took knocks against Fiji but have been included in the group preparing to face the All Blacks.
“We want to challenge ourselves against the best teams and [New Zealand] are among best teams,” 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 great assessment for us.”
The Star's Take on Progress
Ben Earl, in addition, thinks that the team's current capacity to break away in the dying minutes of matches is largely due to their triple close losses by New Zealand the previous year. “You feel battle-hardened, as if you’ve been through battles, you’ve developed the scar tissue to build on those losses, and they stung at the time,” remarked the back-rower, who was awarded man of the match against the Fijians. “But I question to a man in the changing room, would we have changed our path now, with the success that we’re now experiencing? I’d be interested to know because I think they’re very, very priceless lessons.”
