Jamie George has cautioned that Steve Borthwick's side must avoid being intimidated by New Zealand's formidable reputation if they hope to secure their first home triumph over the visitors in 13 years this Saturday.
Squad Boost Before Crucial Fixture
England's head coach got a timely boost with the versatile back recovering from injury and in contention for his first appearance since sustaining an injury on Lions tour, while the full-back and the wing were also named in the 37-man squad announced on the weekend.
Current Form Differs with Past Struggles
England host the All Blacks after stretching their unbeaten run to nine matches with a decisive 38-18 win over Fiji, romping clear in the final quarter. Their current form marks a dramatic shift from a year ago, when the team suffered multiple losses in seven outings, all by narrow margins. Three of those losses came against the Kiwis—two on the overseas tour and a tight loss at home after the fly-half missed two late kicks.
The All Blacks narrowly edged out Scotland on the weekend to keep aspirations of a clean sweep intact, and while the Springboks secured their top ranking, the captain has hailed the All Blacks as “arguably the best side in the world.”
Of the last 11 encounters, England's sole win over the All Blacks came in the 2019 World Cup semi-final, and the visitors have not been beaten in the recent fixtures at England's home ground.
The Captain's Insight on Playing the Kiwis
“What a lot of teams do is sit back in admiration of the All Blacks with their legacy and all their world-class players,” stated the experienced hooker. “It’s tempting to do that. I have done it before. We must remember we’ll be back here at Allianz Stadium. We’re very proud to be competing at home. We will do all we can to come out on top.
“It’s vital to be at your best. The All Blacks are arguably the best side in the world right now. They are a exceptionally skilled squad and they seem to step up a gear when they come to this stadium. The important thing for us to do is work out where we could have been better in the first half last time. But also, develop a defined strategy which can put them under as much stress as we possibly can. By doing so, we’ll give ourselves a opportunity.
“We faced a lot of criticism 12 months ago for not emerging on the right side of close contests and not finding a way to win. Now, we’re doing the complete reverse. Not at all have we cracked it. But we’ve placed a strong focus on the final phases of games and closing games out. Scoring however many tries in the last quarter of that game is a mark of a quality team.”
The Coach's Outlook and Team Changes
Borthwick is again expected to make a several adjustments to his lineup, with skipper the lock, Tom Curry, and Ford all expected to be reinstated to the first XV. The wing and Immanuel Feyi-Waboso each took knocks against Fiji but both have been included in the group preparing to take on New Zealand.
“We aim 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 growing rapidly and we’re keen to learn. So I’m sure the upcoming going to be a valuable assessment for us.”
The Star's Take on Growth
The number eight, in addition, thinks that England’s current capacity to break away in the dying minutes of matches owes much to their triple close losses by New Zealand the previous year. “It leaves you battle-hardened, you feel like you’ve got the wounds, you’ve developed the experience to build on those losses, and they stung at the time,” remarked the back-rower, who was named man of the match against the Fijians. “But I question among the squad in the dressing 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.”
