3–4 minutes
Steve Borthwick has kept faith in his “Pom squad” bench full of British & Irish Lions for the match against the All Blacks, with Tom Curry, Henry Pollock and Marcus Smith among the replacements.
Ollie Chessum (ankle) and Tommy Freeman (hamstring) miss out due to injuries, and Elliot Daly has not had enough time to prove his fitness, so Freddie Steward starts at full back. Tom Roebuck returns from an ankle injury he suffered in training last week to start on the right wing instead of Freeman.
George Ford is the fly half, with Fin Smith not making the 23-man squad at all. Marcus Smith is one of two backs on the bench, alongside the scrum half Ben Spencer.
Pollock, centre, has proved to be another effective player to introduce late in matches
TIMES PHOTOGRAPHER MARC ASPLAND
Alex Coles replaces Chessum at lock, with Chandler Cunningham-South covering second row from the bench. That means Ben Earl reverts to No8, where he started against Australia, alongside Sam Underhill and Guy Pepper.
Curry, therefore, reprises his bench role from which he has helped England win matches in the final quarter. He will be unleased in the second half with his fellow Lions tourists Luke Cowan-Dickie, Ellis Genge, Will Stuart, Pollock and Smith. This powerful bench emulates the strategy used by South Africa, who call their substitutes the “bomb squad”.
With Genge and Stuart held in reserve, Fin Baxter and Joe Heyes start at prop either side of Jamie George at hooker.
Ollie Lawrence retains his place at outside centre, with Fraser Dingwall staying at No12 and Immanuel Feyi-Waboso getting another run on the left wing.
England have only beaten New Zealand eight times in their history, across 46 Tests, the last victory coming in the 2019 World Cup semi-final. The last time England won at Twickenham was in 2012.
In their past three meetings against New Zealand under Borthwick, England have lost in a tight Test each time. In Dunedin in the summer of 2024 they were beaten 16-15, then lost 24-17 at Eden Park. At Twickenham last autumn they also lost 24-22, when Ford hit a post with a penalty and missed a drop-goal in the final moments.
In 2022 Eddie Jones’s England drew 25-25 with the All Blacks, scoring three late tries to rescue a poor position.
England XV to face New Zealand: Freddie Steward (Leicester Tigers, 39 caps); Tom Roebuck (Sale Sharks, 7 caps), Ollie Lawrence (Bath Rugby, 36 caps), Fraser Dingwall (Northampton Saints, 6 caps), Immanuel Feyi-Waboso (Exeter Chiefs, 11 caps); George Ford (Sale Sharks, 103 caps), Alex Mitchell (Northampton Saints, 25 caps); Fin Baxter (Harlequins, 16 caps), Jamie George (Saracens, 104 caps), Joe Heyes (Leicester Tigers, 16 caps), Maro Itoje (Saracens, 95 caps), Alex Coles (Northampton Saints, 12 caps), Guy Pepper (Bath Rugby, 5 caps), Sam Underhill (Bath Rugby, 43 caps), Ben Earl (Saracens, 44 caps.
Replacements: Luke Cowan-Dickie (Sale Sharks, 51 caps), Ellis Genge (Bristol Bears, 73 caps), Will Stuart (Bath Rugby, 51 caps), Chandler Cunningham-South (Harlequins, 19 caps), Tom Curry (Sale Sharks, 63 caps), Henry Pollock (Northampton Saints, 3 caps), Ben Spencer (Bath Rugby, 12 caps), Marcus Smith (Harlequins, 45 caps)
England v New Zealand
Twickenham, Saturday, 3.10pm
TV TNT Sports 1