England have recalled Henry Slade to their starting XV and named three uncapped players on the bench for Saturday’s must-win Nations Championship Test against Fiji at Hill Dickinson Stadium in Liverpool (kick-off 14:10 BST).
According to team news confirmed by Sky Sports and Rugby365, head coach Steve Borthwick announced his side on Thursday with two changes from the 45-21 defeat by South Africa, restoring the Exeter Chiefs centre Slade at 13 and shifting Tommy Freeman back to the wing after his midfield experiment. Guy Pepper’s inclusion at openside flanker, with Tom Curry dropping to the bench, is the only alteration up front, while Marcus Smith keeps the full-back shirt and Jamie George continues as captain.
Steve Borthwick Backs Uncapped Trio To Help End England’s Losing Streak
George Kloska, Benhard Janse van Rensburg and 19-year-old Noah Caluori are all in line for debuts from a bench that also includes Henry Pollock, who again misses out on the starting XV — a selection we weighed up in our predicted England lineup for the Fiji Test.
England arrive on a five-match losing run and face an awkward trip to Argentina on 18 July, with round two carrying real consequences at the top of the table, as covered in our look at the world rugby rankings stakes this weekend. Fiji, beaten 39-24 by Wales in Cardiff last week, hand Caleb Muntz the fly-half reins and start the destructive Levani Botia at No 8.
“All I focus on is this Saturday. That’s all I ever did as a player and that’s all I do as a coach,” Borthwick said, as reported by Rugby365. England won the sides’ last meeting 38-18 at Twickenham in November, and a repeat would end any talk of a first six-Test losing run since 2006.
