England face New Zealand in the first game of their Autumn Nations Series campaign, hosting them at the Allianz Stadium (Twickenham).
The home side have only beaten the All Blacks eight times in their history, having lost 35 and drawn two.
Head Coach Steve Borthwick has only had a 54% win record for England in his tenure at the helm, and despite all the talk of improvements under his stewardship, there is still some doubt regarding his success.
This game against a historic rugby powerhouse is his opportunity to stamp his mark and prove that he is the man for the job and can bring some more success to his country.
Previous Matchups:
These two sides are very familiar with each other, having played each other in July in Auckland and Dunedin, with the All Blacks winning both tests, but with plenty of resistance from their visitors who gave a very good account of themselves.
The last win for England came in the 2019 Rugby World Cup semi-final, and there hasn’t been a win for them at the Allianz Stadium since 2012, where everything seemed to go right, culminating in a 38-21 scoreline.
Key match-ups:
New Zealand number 12 Jordie Barrett was an injury doubt for this game, but Scott Robertson has given him the heads up following the knee injury that was sustained in September.
His opposite number at 13 for England is another player who was doubted to start, Henry Slade. Slade has only played 54 minutes of rugby for Exeter Chiefs since having shoulder surgery.
This battle may be won or lost depending on who has recovered better and who is more physically ready, and if one outplays the other then there could be some serious questions regarding selection given to the losing coach.
The most capped player on the pitch will be flanker Sam Cane, who has 101 caps compared to his opposite number Chandler Cunningham-South, who only has seven appearances for England.
Cunningham-South
With Cane retiring from internationals at the end of 2024 to focus on club rugby for Tokyo Sungoliath, he will be eager to leave an impact on his side and go out with a bang.
Cunningham-South grew up in New Zealand, having been born in Sidcup but emigrating at age four, and will be hoping to secure bragging rights over his adopted country.
This battle between experience and youth, with Chandler only being 21 years old, is one to watch and one that will win or lose the game for their respective sides.
At 8, two vice-captains Ben Earl and Ardie Savia will face-off. The two appear to have a mutual respect, with Savea being quoted before the July tests saying:
“He plays similar to myself. He’s pretty swaggy with the ball, runs hard and has got some good feet.”
This respect should lead to a good match-up between them, and plenty of opportunities for both to show why they are better than the other, and with the importance of their position, could well be the difference between winning and losing.
Battle of the benches:
England have got a very forward-heavy bench, suggesting that later in the game they are going to be relying on physicality instead of speed, and possibly be changing to a more attritional game.
The worry for them is that if one of their backs gets injured during the game, the pack is going to have to be shuffled a lot to accommodate whoever was to come on.
It has a good mix of experience and youth, with George Ford and Dan Cole offering the former and players like Harry Randall offering the latter.
New Zealand on the other hand or more balanced with their replacement players, with a similar mix of experience and youth as England, while also having a wider range of positions covered directly by the bench.
Arguably the most exciting player for either side on the bench is Cam Roigard, with the Hurricanes half-back returning from a knee injury and being a livewire of a player who has been compared to Antoine Dupont, the mystique and evident quality he has as a player will cause some absolute mayhem on the pitch should he come on during the game.
Recent form:
Since the July tests where these two sides faced each other, England have not played, which has brought about suggestions of rustiness and a lack of proper preparation for these Autumn tests, which is rebutted by the fact that their players have been playing in the Premiership, so they are naturally ready.
New Zealand on the other hand have played eight times since July, winning five and losing three, which is poor for their standards.
These defeats came twice against World Cup champions South Africa, as well as a surprising defeat to Argentina in Wellington.
The argument can be made that this has led to better preparation, but the inconsistency of their results may mean that there is a lack of confidence in the camp, and a lack of winning mentality that is crucial in test rugby.
READ MORE: Dylan Hartley – England need to match All Blacks’ intensity from the off
