Maintain width in defence
After Friday’s deluge of rain, Saturday is forecast to be dryer. Some of New Zealand’s sweeping attack has been exceptional and they have the athleticism to stretch their hosts. England’s defensive performance against Australia was outstanding. They used two-man tackles to dominate collisions and control the speed of the attack. Meanwhile, they worked extremely hard to “reload” and fill the frontline on both sides of the breakdown.
Led by Guy Pepper and Sam Underhill, the forwards need to be robust yet agile close to the ruck – not least to help Ford with the heavy traffic that will come his way. One potential area of weakness, though, which will be probed by the All Blacks, is the 13 channel. Tommy Freeman started the Wallabies win at outside centre and shuttled across the pitch to plug holes. Against Fiji, with Freeman back on the wing, England posted Ollie Lawrence at 12 in defence and shifted Fraser Dingwall one place wider. New Zealand will flood runners into that area.
Breakdown decision-making – when to burrow in and when to leave the ball alone and cycle into the front line – must be sharp because England need to keep men on their feet.
Resist set-piece threat
The scrum battle looms large. New Zealand boast two burly front rows, with the reserve trio of Tamaiti Williams, Samisoni Taukei’aho and Pasilio Tosi immensely destructive. Borthwick has selected a strong bench to prevent any late lapses and ensure solidity for 80 minutes.
