England call on veteran as Steve Borthwick names team early ahead of ‘very special’ All Blacks Test

England head coach Steve Borthwick has made two changes to his starting lineup to face the All Blacks at Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin.

Both changes from the side that ran out against Japan at the end of June come in the front-row with Joe Marler and Will Stuart being named to start against New Zealand.

No other changes

Joining him in the front-row is hooker and skipper Jamie George who sits in front of the lock pairing Maro Itoje and George Martin who continue their work together.

The back-row is also the same, with blindside Chandler Cunningham-South being rewarded with another start – just his second for England – alongside Sam Underhill and Ben Earl.

The backline is untouched as Borthwick decided to stick with Marcus Smith at 10 for the massive Test while Alex Mitchell maintains his place. In the midfield, hard-running Ollie Lawrence partners with Henry Slade again.

Meanwhile, in the back-three George Furbank is joined by Tommy Freeman and Immanuel Feyi-Waboso.

There are two uncapped players in the regulation 5-3 split bench with Fin Baxter and Ollie Slightholme in with a chance to get their Test debuts.

It could be a memorable day on the other end of the spectrum for veteran Dan Cole who will tie Jason Leonard as England’s second most capped men’s player with 114 should he be used on the day.

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Big occasion

Borthwick expects a huge Test match and is eager to have his side measure up against the All Blacks in New Zealand.

“It doesn’t get more challenging than playing New Zealand at home, but it’s exactly where we want to be,” said Borthwick.

“We want to find out more about ourselves and test ourselves against one of the best teams in the world.

“Test rugby is a game of fine margins, so our mindset is going to be very important on Saturday. We’ll need to be mentally strong, play a tactically smart game and ensure we maintain our discipline.

“The Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin is a great venue with a quick surface, and the closed roof should make the atmosphere very special.”

Matchday 23

England: 15 George Furbank, 14 Immanuel Feyi-Waboso, 13 Henry Slade, 12 Ollie Lawrence, 11 Tommy Freeman, 10 Marcus Smith, 9 Alex Mitchell, 8 Ben Earl, 7 Sam Underhill, 6 Chandler Cunningham-South, 5 George Martin, 4 Maro Itoje, 3 Will Stuart, 2 Jamie George (c), 1 Joe Marler
Replacements: 16 Theo Dan, 17 Fin Baxter, 18 Dan Cole, 19 Alex Coles, 20 Tom Curry, 21 Ben Spencer, 22 Fin Smith, 23 Ollie Sleightholm

Kick-off: 19:05 local (08:05 BST)
Venue: Forsyth Barr Stadium, Dunedin
Referee: Nika Amashukeli (GRU)
Assistant Referees: Nic Berry (RA), Jordan Way (RA)
TMO: Eric Gauzins (FFR)

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