England's skipper has warned 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 13 years this Saturday.
Team Updates Ahead of Pivotal 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 arm fracture on British & Irish Lions tour, while Freddie Steward and the wing featured in the expanded squad revealed on the weekend.
Current Form Contrasts with Past Struggles
The home side host the All Blacks after extending their unbeaten run to nine games with a decisive comfortable win over the Pacific Islanders, again pulling away 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. A trio of these defeats came against the Kiwis—two on the overseas tour and a 24-22 loss at Twickenham after George Ford failed with late goal attempts.
The All Blacks narrowly edged out Scotland on Saturday to keep hopes of a home nations grand slam intact, and while South Africa secured their number one ranking, George described New Zealand as “perhaps the best side in the world.”
In the previous 11 meetings, the team's sole win over the All Blacks came in the 2019 World Cup semi-final, and New Zealand remain unbeaten in the recent fixtures at Twickenham.
The Captain's Perspective on Facing the All Blacks
“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’ve also got to be aware we’ll be back here at Allianz Stadium. We’re very proud to be competing at home. We will do all we can to win that game.
“You have to be at your best. The All Blacks are without doubt the strongest team in the world at the minute. They’re an exceptionally skilled squad and they appear to step up a gear when they come to Allianz Stadium. Our focus 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 are able to. If we do that, we’ll give ourselves a chance.
“We came under a lot of criticism 12 months ago for not emerging on the winning end of close contests and not figuring out how to win. Now, we’re doing the complete reverse. Not at all have we solved everything. But we’ve put a big emphasis on the latter stages of games and closing games out. Scoring multiple tries in the last quarter of that game is a sign of a quality team.”
The Coach's Outlook and Team Adjustments
The England coach is again expected to make a number of changes to his lineup, with skipper the lock, Tom Curry, and Ford all expected to be reinstated to the first XV. The wing and the newcomer each took knocks against Fiji but have been selected in the squad getting ready to take on the All Blacks.
“We aim to test our mettle against the top sides and [New Zealand] are among best teams,” said Borthwick. “We’re a young side, we’re evolving, I think we’re growing rapidly and we’re eager to learn. So I’m sure the upcoming going to be a great assessment for us.”
The Star's Reflection on Progress
The number eight, in addition, thinks that the team's current capacity to break away in the closing stages of matches is largely due to their triple close losses by New Zealand last year. “It leaves you battle-hardened, you feel like you’ve got the wounds, you’ve developed the experience to build on those setbacks, and they hurt at the time,” remarked the back-rower, who was awarded man of the match against the Fijians. “But I wonder to a man in the dressing room, would we have changed our path now, with the success that we’re sometimes experiencing? I’d be interested to know because I think they’re very, very priceless lessons.”
