Freddie Steward has been recalled to the England squad to face South Africa, with Steve Borthwick making four changes to his lineup to take on the back-to-back world champions. As predicted by Springboks head coach Rassie Erasmus, Steward returns to the team for the first time this autumn, with George Furbank dropping out of the match-day 23. Additionally, Ben Spencer has been replaced by Jack van Poortvliet at scrum-half following England’s consecutive losses to New Zealand and Australia. In two injury-related changes, Sam Underhill and Ollie Sleightholme come in for Tom Curry and Immanuel Feyi-Waboso respectively.

Steward last played for England in the second Test defeat against New Zealand over the summer. Standing at 6ft 5in, his aerial skills could be crucial against South Africa. England has emphasized this week that the crackdown on “escorts” is significantly impacting matches this autumn, and Steward is highly skilled under the high ball. Spencer, on the other hand, drops out of the match-day squad entirely. Van Poortvliet makes his first appearance for England since suffering a serious ankle injury before the World Cup last year, with Harry Randall retaining his place on the bench.

Underhill’s inclusion in the starting lineup is due to Curry’s head injury sustained against Australia. The Bath flanker had started nine consecutive Tests before being dropped for England’s autumn opener against the All Blacks. Borthwick resisted the temptation to start Ben Curry, who came off the bench against New Zealand, or Alex Dombrandt, who remains among the replacements. Sleightholme makes his first England start after scoring two tries off the bench against the Wallabies last weekend.

Jamie George continues to captain the side from hooker, with Ellis Genge and Will Stuart as the starting props. Maro Itoje and George Martin continue at lock, with Chandler Cunningham-South and Ben Earl in the back row. Henry Slade and Ollie Lawrence remain in the centres, with Tommy Freeman keeping his place on the wing and Marcus Smith at fly-half. On the bench, Fin Baxter, Luke Cowan-Dickie, Dan Cole, Nick Isiekwe, George Ford, and Tom Roebuck join Dombrandt and Randall among the replacements.

“We’re excited to challenge ourselves against the world’s top-ranked team and back-to-back Rugby World Cup champions,” said Borthwick. “Test matches against South Africa are always thrilling contests, and I’m sure Saturday will be no exception.”

Source link:   https://www.theguardian.com