After a week filled with verbal sparring between the sides, England and New Zealand go into Saturday’s encounter at Twickenham with a score to settle.
The All Blacks head into this clash slightly better-placed than England, with the New Zealanders sitting pretty in third spot on the World Rugby rankings while the English are fifth.
Additionally, the All Blacks also hold the upper hand in terms of results in this fixture, having clinched close wins over England at home in July.
But with recent encounters often decided by the slimmest of margins, both teams will be primed for another fierce battle in one of rugby’s greatest rivalries and with England enjoying home ground advantage this week, this clash promises to be an even tougher test.
ENGLAND VERSUS ALL BLACKS TEAMS
England — 15 George Furbank, 14 Immanuel Feyi-Waboso, 13 Henry Slade, 12 Ollie Lawrence, 11 Tommy Freeman, 10 Marcus Smith, 9 Ben Spencer, 8 Ben Earl, 7 Tom Curry, 6 Chandler Cunningham-South, 5 George Martin, 4 Maro Itoje, 3 Will Stuart, 2 Jamie George (captain), 1 Ellis Genge.
Subs: 16 Theo Dan, 17 Fin Baxter, 18 Dan Cole, 19 Nick Isiekwe, 20 Ben Curry, 21 Alex Dombrandt, 22 Harry Randall, 23 George Ford.
New Zealand — 15 Will Jordan, 14 Mark Tele’a, 13 Rieko Ioane, 12 Jordie Barrett, 11 Caleb Clarke, 10 Beauden Barrett, 9 Cortez Ratima, 8 Ardie Savea, 7 Sam Cane, 6 Wallace Sititi, 5 Tupou Vaa’i, 4 Scott Barrett (captain), 3 Tyrel Lomax, 2 Codie Taylor, 1 Tamaiti Williams.
Subs: 16 Asafo Aumua, 17 Ofa Tu’ungafasi, 18 Pasilio Tosi, 19 Patrick Tuipulotu, 20 Samipeni Finau, 21 Cam Roigard, 22 Anton Lienert-Brown, 23 Damian McKenzie.
Date: Saturday, November 2
Venue: Twickenham Stadium, London, England
Kick-off: 17:10
Referee: Angus Gardner (Australia)
Assistant referees: Pierre Brousset (France), Jordan Way (Australia)
TMO: Marius van der Westhuizen (South Africa)
WHO WILL BE VICTORIOUS AT TWICKENHAM
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