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England make two XV changes and hand Manu Tuilagi a surprise role
By Liam Heagney
Eddie Jones has named an England team to face the Wallabies this Saturday that shows two changes from the XV that put eleven tries past Tonga in last Saturday's Autumn Nations Series opener at Twickenham. With skipper Owen Farrell cleared for selection following the false positive that ruled him out of the match versus the Pacific Islanders after he was originally chosen as the starting No10, he has now been chosen to start at inside centre on this occasion.
That inclusion has resulted in the break-up of the impressive midfield partnership of Manu Tuilagi and Henry Slade - but the surprise is that Tuilagi will keep his place in the starting XV and will instead start on the right wing in place of Adam Radwan. The 30-year-old has previously started 38 games for England and 37 of those appearances have come in the midfield with his sole outing on the right wing happening in June 2014 away to the All Blacks in Dunedin.
The other XV change sees Marcus Smith promoted to start at out-half in place of George Furbank. On the Autumn Nations Series bench, Sale pair Bevan Rodd, who was called into the squad after Joe Marler tested positive for Covid this week, and Raffi Quirke are in line to make their Test debuts in a match where Maro Itoje will make his 50th appearance for England following his debut against Italy in 2016.
It is a six-two split on the bench between forwards and backs, with Sam Simmonds poised to earn his first England cap since March 2018. Jones said: “We know this will be a tough test for us, we are playing against a team who have been together a while and who have beat the world champions twice.
"As an Australian, I know how much this game means. We have had a really good week of preparation, we are looking to improve our performance this week and I think this side is building well.”
ENGLAND (vs Australia, Saturday)
15. Freddie Steward (Leicester Tigers, 3 caps)
14. Manu Tuilagi (Sale Sharks, 44 caps)
13. Henry Slade (Exeter Chiefs, 41 caps)
12. Owen Farrell (Saracens, 93 caps)
11. Jonny May (Gloucester Rugby, 67 caps)
10. Marcus Smith (Harlequins, 3 caps)
9. Ben Youngs (Leicester Tigers, 110 caps)
1. Ellis Genge (Leicester Tigers, 31 caps)
2. Jamie George (Saracens, 60 caps)
3. Kyle Sinckler (Bristol Bears, 45 caps)
4. Maro Itoje (Saracens, 49 caps)
5. Jonny Hill (Exeter Chiefs, 10 caps)
6. Courtney Lawes (Northampton Saints, 88 caps)
7. Sam Underhill (Bath Rugby, 25 caps)
8. Tom Curry (Sale Sharks, 34 caps)
FINISHERS
16. Jamie Blamire (Newcastle Falcons, 3 caps)
17. Bevan Rodd (Sale Sharks, uncapped)
18. Will Stuart (Bath Rugby, 13 caps)
19. Charlie Ewels (Bath Rugby, 24 caps)
20. Alex Dombrandt (Harlequins, 2 caps)
21. Sam Simmonds (Exeter Chiefs, 7 caps)
22. Raffi Quirke (Sale Sharks, uncapped)
23. Max Malins (Saracens, 8 caps)
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Latest Comments
John, McKenzie was 10 years ago and he only lasted 15 months until the disgustingly unfair affair that brought him down. I thought that if he didn't get another gig over Eddie V2 then he was done. I read that he had been approached but declined to put his name in the ring.
There are no potential Wallaby coaches outside of McKellar unless you have some inside info?
Go to commentsThe way they are defending is sometime pathetic to be honest. Itoje is usually on the inside of the rush and he is paired with a slower tight forward. Unable to keep up with the rush we have seen the line become disconnected on the inside where the big boys are. How many times have we seen Earl rush past the first receiver almost into no mans land covering no attacker. It looks like a system without any guidance. Tome Wright, Ikitau and a number of Wallabies went back to this soft centre as did Williams, Jordan and several others. Also when the line is broken the multiple lines of defence seems to be missing. The rush is predicated on a cover and recovery system with multiple lines of defence but with England you dont see it any more. Fitness and conditioning seems to be off as well as players are struggling to keep up with the intensity of the rush. Felix Jones has left a huge hole. The whole situation was and is a mess. Why they insist on not letting him go and having him work remotely is beyond me. Its leading to massive negative press and is a hot button issue thats distracting from the squad. Also the communication around Jones and his role has been absolute rubbish and is totally disjointed. While some say he is working remotely and playing a role others are saying theres been no contact. His role has not been defined and so people keep asking and keep getting different answers. England need a clean break from him and need to start over. Whatever reason for his leaving its time to cut the rope before the saga drags the whole Borthwick regime down. As for Joe El Abd well good luck to him. He is being made to look like an amateur by the whole saga and he is being asked to coach a system thats not his and which has been perfected and honed since 2017 by Nienaber, Jones, Erasmus and Co and which was first started by White in 2004. He is literally trying to figure out a system pioneered by double world cup winning coaches at the highest level and coach it at the same time. Talk about being on a hiding to nothing.
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