Quilter Nations Series: England v New Zealand
Venue: Allianz Stadium, Twickenham Date: Saturday, 15 November Kick-off: 15:10 GMT
Coverage: Listen to commentary on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra and BBC Sounds and follow live text commentary on the BBC Sport website and app.
England have injury concerns over Tommy Freeman and Ollie Chessum ahead of Saturday’s autumn international against New Zealand.
Versatile back Freeman is being assessed for a hamstring problem, while second row Chessum has a foot injury and was seen on crutches at the England team hotel. The British and Irish Lions pair started England’s wins over Australia and Fiji but missed Monday’s training session.
Head coach Steve Borthwick has other wing options if Northampton’s Freeman is ruled out. Elliot Daly is available after recovering from the fractured forearm sustained on the Lions tour, though he has not played since facing Queensland Reds on 2 July.
Tom Roebuck appears to have recovered from an ankle issue and Henry Arundell strengthened his case for a starting spot with a splendid try in the 38-18 win over Fiji. Freddie Steward, who started against Australia, looks to have healed a hand injury and will compete with Daly and Marcus Smith for the full-back position.
Captain Maro Itoje began the Fiji game on the bench and could replace Chessum, while Alex Coles retained his starting place. Under Borthwick, England have won nine Tests in a row and moved up to fourth in the world rankings this week, overtaking France after their loss to world champions South Africa.
The All Blacks, ranked second, have won both of their autumn matches so far, beating Ireland 26-13 in their opener and edging Scotland 25-17 thanks to a late Damian McKenzie try.
England have not beaten New Zealand since the 2019 Rugby World Cup semi-final in Yokohama and last defeated the All Blacks at Twickenham in 2012.
Former captain Jamie George urged England to embrace the occasion rather than be intimidated by New Zealand’s reputation. “You’ve got to be at your best because they’re not just another team,” he said. “They are arguably the best team in the world at the minute. They’ve got world-class players. They are as complete a team as there is out there. They’re fantastic and they seem to step up a gear when they come to Allianz Stadium. We’ve got to come up with a clear gameplan that’s going to put them under as much pressure as possible and then go out and execute it perfectly because that’s what we’ll need to do to win.”
Flanker Sam Underhill warned of New Zealand’s attacking threat and breakdown skills. “They are a very athletic team,” he told BBC Sport. “They have a lot of very good ball-carriers and are a very good wide attacking team. They are famous how they light up in attack and how quickly they move the ball and take advantage of space. You have to keep them as shut down as you can. They have a very good attacking skillset but also jackal threat with guys like Ardie Savea and Wallace Sititi at the breakdown.”
