Stuart Lancaster has named a close-to-full-strength team for the visit of Ireland to Twickenham this weekend, as the two teams prepare for their final game before the start of the Rugby World Cup. There are a total of five changes to the side that lost to France last time out.
Brad Barritt comes into the number 12 shirt for his first England outing since the win over Australia last November, and partners Jonathan Joseph for the first time in what will likely be England’s first choice combination at the tournament.
Joe Marler, Tom Youngs and Dan Cole get another crack after the scrum and line-out creaked in Paris, and need a strong performance to allay any set piece fears. Chris Robshaw is captain as Tom Wood, Ben Morgan and Geoff Parling all come into the starting line-up.
The other change is in the back three, where Anthony Watson comes in for Jack Nowell. Sam Burgess is named on the bench and will win his second cap if introduced.
ENGLAND TEAM TO PLAY IRELAND
15. Mike Brown (Harlequins, 38 caps)
14. Anthony Watson (Bath Rugby, 10 caps)
13. Jonathan Joseph (Bath Rugby, 12 caps)
12. Brad Barritt (Saracens, 22 caps)
11. Jonny May (Gloucester Rugby, 15 caps)
10. George Ford (Bath Rugby, 12 caps)
9. Ben Youngs (Leicester Tigers, 48 caps)
1. Joe Marler (Harlequins, 32 caps)
2. Tom Youngs (Leicester Tigers, 23 caps)
3. Dan Cole (Leicester Tigers, 51 caps)
4. Courtney Lawes (Northampton Saints, 39 caps)
5. Geoff Parling (Exeter Chiefs, 24 caps)
6. Tom Wood (Northampton Saints, 37 caps)
7. Chris Robshaw (captain, Harlequins, 38 caps)
8. Ben Morgan (Gloucester Rugby, 28 caps)
Replacements
16. Jamie George (Saracens, 1 cap)
17. Mako Vunipola (Saracens, 22 caps)
18. Kieran Brookes (Northampton Saints, 11 caps)
19. Joe Launchbury (Wasps, 23 caps)
20. Billy Vunipola (Saracens, 18 caps)
21. Richard Wigglesworth (Saracens, 22 caps)
22. Owen Farrell (Saracens, 30 caps)
23. Sam Burgess (Bath Rugby, 1 cap)
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Fair. Only change would have been finding a place for Slade on the bench but that’s too many players and Burgess needs the game time more than Sladey. I think this will be a huge game for either Farrell or Ford to press for the starting shirt. Farrell played well against France and Ford was overwhelmed the following week. It will be interesting to see if Farrell comes on at 13 or 10.
Line out should fair much better with both Parling and Wood in there and some much needed gametime in the forwards for Morgan.
In the backs it looks like our first choice halves and centres with their direct rivals on the bench as a bit of a shoot-out. Back three is strong but I imagine if this was a cup game Nowell would be in over May.
England have been utterly bested in the forwards twice under Lancaster that I can remember. Against Wales in 2013 and against France for 60 minutes last week. It doesn’t happen often and it is even more rare at Twickenham, so hoping England can turn it around here and build some momentum for the World Cup.
Probably something close to what they think is first choice. Parling and Wood get slots based on the line out. Morgan needs game time but might not actually be first choice come the big games.
Surprised to see May over Nowell – much prefer Nowell as a player.
Slade would have been nice to have on the bench, but it probably doesn’t make sense to have him and Farrell there.
Nice to see George and Brookes there, hope they’ll be in over Webber and Wilson come the WC, both in far better form right now.
I am also surprised to see May ahead of Nowell but perhaps given May’s two contrasting performances against France, they want to test him again.
England – 4 big games in exactly 4 weeks, so there will be plenty of changes afoot whilst managing the attrition methinks.
Is it not 4 in 5 weeks? We have the weekend of the 12th off between Ireland and Fiji games.
Rotation is definitely needed, but not wholesale changes. The likes of May/Nowell, Wood/Haskell, No.8’s and locks are likely to alter slightly from week to week.
5 weekends Jacob. But 29 days, between this Saturday and Saturday 3rd October.
I am not suggesting planning changes necessarily, simply that for the starting XV to remain free from injury over this time would be very lucky.
If Ford has another shocker and/ or Farrell plays well enough to get the starting 10 shirt, I could see Slade taking the bench slot above Ford, due to his versatility.
Whilst something had to be done about the line out, I do fear that we have overly weakened the breakdown in the absence of Launchbury, Haskell and Vunipola. I wonder how much time George and Joe will get, because if Youngs has another off day, and Parling gets knocked back too easily perhaps George gets the 2 shirt and with Launchbury restored.
Wood needs to find some form, but not holding my breath there.
Really hope the boys pull out a performance because I’m sure I’m not the only England fan feeling a bit flat ahead of our own world cup. Think both teams will be up for this, not wanting to go into the wc on the back of 2 defeats.
Agree with most the comment’s this looks like the starting 15 in the wc games, Strong line up but I reckon Ireland will still win, judging by your back line-up I’m guessing they will make there breaks with a classic Ireland cross-field kick.
Despite my hatred for Brown (mostly cos I think he is cocky) he is a good player, pretty good on the counter too but I reckon he’s gonna come unstuck and get caught out either with a desperate kick under pressure or running into a brick wall that is made of Irish.
Not a huge difference but I reckon Ireland by 5-10. I reckon England will get a few good centre breaks maybe even burst through the middle and get it wide when on counter but I just don’t think it’ll sync on the night.
Best of luck I’m looking forward to watching the match.
Is this pack physical enough both in the tight and the breakdown? Neither lock is someone you ideally want packing down behind the tighthead. Really not sure on the balance, but there are some good options off the bench. Similarly with only Morgan as a really explosive carrier to get you over the gainline will it be too predictable and too difficult to get good quality front foot ball?
I appreciate we aren’t going to want to go through every permutation at the lineout and give too much away but there can be no excuses this time. There is no:
– Youngs isn’t used to coming on as a sub when players are a little tired so he is throwing too high.
– There aren’t enough options so it is too predictable
– Lawes has suddenly forgotten how to call a lineout even though there have been no issues with Webber/Lawes or Hartley/Lawes
– Parling isn’t there
Everytime the lineout has been poor the one constant has been Youngs, another poor show here and we can’t risk him in key pool games.
Praying 10, 12 & 13 look like a cohesive unit. What options have we got otherwise? Probably an all Bath trio being our best alternative bet.
After 3.5 years of “when I took over after 2011 we were 5th in the rankings, etc, etc”, well we are currently going into this RWC ranked 6th.
For me this is no warm up, this is a must win game to build momentum.
Can’t help feeling jittery with Farrell
and Sam covering 10-15.Wonder what Stu’s subs plan is.I agree with Robshaw this is a must win game so we can go into the group with confidence.A loss will cause too much doubt and uncertainty.
Understand Wood coming in as a line out option but still think he makes the back row less effective with ball in hand, pressure on Morgan as I think it will be fairly obvious to Ireland who will be carrying the ball. Interesting to see whether Parling starts against Fiji if line out functions well. Youngs really under scrutiny i think, a poor display at set piece time could see George as no1 going into RWC.
Looking forward to seeing BB and JJ together….more excited to see if Burgess and JJ get a run though!
As per my previous complaints this pack is far too light.
It will be bullied by the Irish in the tight and needs the strength and steel that Easter or Attwood brings – even Haskell would help! Poor old Morgan. The Irish will be ready and waiting for him all day long
I guess there’s no point harking back though. Just wish we had a hooker who could throw in without needing a Parling/Wood shaped safety blanket…
It’s a good team, time to stop sniping and just get behind them, it’s still a warm up and things will change before the Fiji game so just enjoy all things English. Gatland has started the sniping too so we can’t be too bad to have him so worried he has gone to press with the first dig. Lancaster is our Manager, doesn’t get involved with the crap and has improved the England camp so much since the farcical 2011 RWC. NOW is the time to give him our support & have pride in what he has achieved
I’ll be back in “cheerleader” mode at kick off. However targets were set to be top 2 in the world by the end of last year. We go into the last warmup game ranked 6th also currently the 3rd ranked team in the pool and a lower ranking than after the “disaster” of 2011. So all the talk of how much better everything is really feels like spin, smoke and mirrors.
A morale boosting win (and performance) is really needed.
I agree we have slipped in the rankings but rebuilding is not easy & we are taking a young team to the RWC. Apart from the game in France some pride has been restored, if we get out of this horrible group I see us getting beyond the QF and have the tickets to back up my support. Hardest game will be Fiji – a very large banana skin.
In all fairness the rankings situation is slightly misleading – the way they work gives massive boosts to teams beating people above them, especially the top rankings. So we have slipped from 4th because Aus beat NZ (1st) and South Africa (3rd) and Wales just beat Ireland (2nd). That’s out of our control. Our only recent games have been against France… Who are below us. Even a double win would probably have meant we got overtaken by Wales and Aus.
Sounds like I’m making excuses doesn’t it…
I think the rankings are a bit of a nonsense. I didn’t think England were number 2 in the world a couple of years back when we got there. I think we can all agree that NZ are number 1, 2 through to 6 seems a bit of a lottery, not much between Eng, Wales & Ire imo.
This right here is spot on. NZ are number 1, winning the world cup wont even unseat them cos they’ll have lost 1 game. Through 2-6 they are “on the day” victories, things come into affect such as location of the game but that alone isn’t a big enough factor. Any one of those 2-6 can beat each other and it comes down to a couple of points, we may see trends that 1 team routinely beats another by that couple of points margin but that quality is similar.
What is 1-5points margin? a call from the ref, or 1 break away from a bounce. Nothing that can be consistent. Every game between them is interesting which is what has made the 6nations routinely interesting in recent years cos they England, Ireland & Wales are competing closely each time. We don’t go in going “will Ireland get a grand slam” its “with any of them” and the triple crown is just as big of a challenge to achieve!
Can’t agree more. I’ve said this on here so many times – the rankings are largely irrelevant.
SH sides, because of their historical dominance, are now hard to shift far down the rankings due to the fact they more regularly play each other. There are far more ranking points up for grabs in a SA vs Aus game than Wales vs England, so the gap widens further. I pay no attention to them, so I’m sure any international coach or player will do the same.
Henry, you’re right to not pay too much heed to the rankings. There is virtually nothing between Australia and England.
One thing is for sure and that is that the Aussies and the Welsh will worry just as much, if not more, about playing England at Twickenham.
Even the Irish press have headlined; England’s “Frighteningly good”, and “Very Strong” team for this week.
The answer is of course to beat the teams, well, above you. The HN have @ least x3 shots a yr to do so & @ home… & they could travel south more often. England did.
Aus up to 2! Is this to be dismissed for the WC, esp as they’re in England’s grp? Do so @ yr peril methinks.
Ireland who were 2, are now 3, but they got to the penultimate by consistently WINNING! It’s pretty much that simple
Whilst it can be a bit of an up & down game like snakes & ladders, it must boost morale if a team’s on an upward curve going into a WC.
And surely no one would state that they’d RATHER their team were going downwards?!
To state that rankings are misleading is surely, er, slightly misleading.
‘It’s a good team’. Hate to see yr bad team.
How can you come out with this stuff? What precisely has Lancaster achieved? Put pride in the jersey? Chucked out the old (regardless of ability) & brought in the new? Try comparing his Int’al record with JS for instrance, or even that of the much maligned Johnno.
England, under Lancaster, are plummeting down the rankings, has a recent track record whereby they’ve lost 6 in a row v the SH & last up had no game at scrum, line out OR breakdown v France!
And Gatland’s playing mind games. Some of his pts seem pretty valid to me esp when Lancs drops his 1 truly creative player, @ fly1/2, for the inexp & fallible Ford (see France game? 4 errors in 1st 7 mins) & has the least exp player in the history of the game covering centre?!
Regds the 2011 RWC, if England hadn’t gone out v France, would it all have been so ‘ farcical’? Stop yr scape goating. The reality is that Lancaster’s record parallels that of Johnson’s!
Perlease!
JS won 8 our of 10 6 nations games. SL has won 16 out of 20 – the exact same record. JS has managed one win over SA and one win over Aus. SL has two wins over Aus, a win over NZ and a draw away in SA.
MJ actually had an okish record – has anyone ever said otherwise? However, when it came to the WC, he absolutely bottled it. The likes of Flood, Hartley, Lawes that has played in the 6N win were dropped and in came Thomson, Wilkinson and Shaw. Unfortunately, he paid for those big decisions. Add in the off-field issues and that is why people really look back as MJ’s era as poor.
The “6 in a row to SH” is nonsense stat. 5 to NZ, at the peak of their unbeatable form. 3 of those 5 away. Only one in which we were convincingly beaten. It’s an absolute nonsense stat that no-one outside of yourself seems to deem relevant. Every team on the planet could easily have lost 5 games in a row (3 away) to NZ, they’re rather good.
Rankings – I’ve answered that above already but everyone knows how nonsensical they are.
Surely it’s what you want to see. JS has mostly been CONSISTENT. SL hasn’t. You ignore current form & circs & Lancs’ team beat a NZ team with a virus. I know this latter pt undermine’s yr belief in England & everyone get’s peed off with it, but either they did or they didn’t & England’s subsequent record v NZ doesn’t just doesn’t stand up to scrutiny. Even England’s away stuff; they lost! NZ have played England away forever & still have a 75% overall win rate.
I’m quoting the S.Times which parallels lanc’s record with johnno’s. Lanc’s record is as inconsistent as his incoherent selection policy, esp currently… Will Carling & Clive Woodward concur.
You seem to be pulling out stats to support yr belief rather than taking a more objective perspective or overview.
Again it’s no skin off my nose, but I don’t see how yr too subjective views make rational sense… or help England’s cause.
Of course England may win tomorrow… which may be the start of a revival?
I don’t think anyone has ever suggested that England are as good as NZ. Either now or historically? So why the comparison?
Can you blame the England for clinging to the one NZ win in a decade?
Again, you seem to be drilling points I’m agreeing with. MJ’s tenure was ruined him bottling it at WC time. His actual record was ok; although SL’s does shade it.
Selection is never agreeable. Personally SL picked one away from my choice for the 31. I’d have taken Easter over Kruis, just. Burgess is a gamble, but not as huge as is being made out. In reality, he won’t have loads of minutes, any more than SBW will in big games. He was selected because no other 12 offered anything particularly great. So why not take a punt on a guy that exceeds confidence, demands respect and is a hugely professional presence? If there were two genuinely good options for SL at 12, they’d have gone.
I mention the NZ win because @ the time & perhaps even now(?), too many, in looking backwards, seem to cling to it subjectively(?). The more relevant here & now picture is what’s important… like from 2.30 pm today… & England’s current form.
For me Cip’s omission reps negligence as he ought to have been 1st choice for 2 yrs now (SCW). This is a mindset of flawed thinking as DC is exp & the most (almost only) truly, naturally skilled (former) team member. Ford is vastly over rated & succumbs to pressure too readily.
The Burgess pick it totally illogical. A novice lamb to the wolves if he ever faces the SH.
But what’s done is done & time will tell whose more right I guess.
G’luck this arbo.
Lord this Irish match is so much more than a warm up…..so many positions to sort out but I think SL has to be pragmatic and go the Ford option for Fiji and Uruguay, Farrell for oz and Wales. Cynical but necessary, this is the RWC group and the 10 role takes on SO much importance. Still can’t believe May and Goode are in the team in the World Cup. We have nothing on the bench….nothing….if we’re under the cosh and need, desperately, something. England have to cross fingers and hope to get out of the group and then pray someone, out of the blue, produces something spectacular. Convinced SL has picked a squad that will make the quarters at best.
I know Morgan needs the game time, but without Launchbury starting as well our carrying options are down to 2 in the forwards. Youngs and Morgan. Although Lawes did carry well against France in the second half!
Really difficult to call this one. So much could go wrong if these combinations don’t work. Ford will probably be under more pressure here than he was in France. Sexton will be on him at every opportunity, and he will need Barritt more than he knows. JJ needs to step up and show he can play first receiver if Ford is in trouble, and try and create some magic with his dancing feet.
Shame Nowell and Watson are not playing together as I think they are our best two wingers, but May needs some time against a team that will test his aerial ability.
All in all this should be a cracking game!
To be fair to Parling I’ve always rated him as a carrier. Despite his fairly slender frame he has a happy knack of making his way over the gain line with intelligent lines in the tight.
In reality though, a Robshaw and Wood combination need to absolutely own the breakdown if they are to make up for their lack of carrying as a pair. We’ve seen them do it, but it needs to happen more regularly against the top sides.
Parling certainly carries more than Wood and Robshaw but probably not with the same impact that Tom Youngs and Ben Morgan do.
You’re right about the Wood/Robshaw combination as well. If we don’t win the breakdown with both of them on the pitch then you would have to say that having both of them is a luxury we could probably do without. Of course having Barritt on the pitch is a bit like having an extra flanker, much the same as Burgess will provide the same ability when he comes on.
I think a win on Saturday is absolutely crucial not just for the impact it will have on English confidence but equally on our group teams.Lose and I feel sure the Twickenham factor will
hardly count in the minds of our opponents.Stuart you owe the nation-it is time to deliver!
A decent forwards performance would not go amiss tbh. A win alone will not give us the confidence we need, the pack has to dominate at home.
Will be interesting to see whether Schmidt rests any players, or whether he really does want the win.
Sorry but I cannot go along with a lot of the (surprising) optimism I’m finding here.
I don’t want to be a Cassandra but I genuinely fear for England in this tournament. I’m more convinced than ever that Bomber is the wrong man for the job,his squad selection is baffling and I just think we will rue the omission of Attwood,Cipriani,Ewers and Itoje and the inclusion of Burgess.
I desperately want to be proven wrong. A good performance on Saturday would go someway to restoring my own optimism but ,as has been said, even a handsome victory may prove false if Ireland pick a weakened team or play at 70%.
Sorry if I come across as a misery but you have to call it how you see it.
Jacob will attest that I am neither mr optimism or SL’s biggest fan, BUT I think the pessimists are going a bit far, even for me. We are unbeaten at Twickenham against NH sides for more than 2 years. Have beaten Australia for the last 2 years and were pretty competitive against NZ and SAF with much poorer sides than what we have available now.
Nothing is a sure thing, yes we could go out at the group stages, but I think it unlikely. I also fancy us to beat Ireland at the weekend, but it won’t be the end of the world if we don’t.
I can vouch for him here – in fact, this post from Benjit surprises me!
This you’ve spot on though Benjit, SL has got things wrong, but for the most part we are in ok shape. Outside of NZ, no other team stands out as a great deal better than us. We are at home. I expect us to get out the group, and if we manage to win the group we avoid SA and NZ until the final. Not to say winning the group will be an easy feat!
Teecee – nice list of players; but I struggle to see who they would replace? Cipriani I like, but he is not the best two fly halves, nor one of the best two full backs we have – so how can he go?
Itoje and Ewers will get their chance, but with only three flankers going they were never going to pip Haskell, Wood and Robshaw. Those three are proven at test level, which they other two are not. I’m sure both have bright international futures ahead of them but to refer to their non-selection as “baffling” is quite, well, baffling.
Attwood vs Kruis was a flip of the coin, neither outstanding but both do an ok job. Again I can understand the Attwood fans, but hardly a crazy selection.
You’ve no need to apologise. You have just called it how you see it. Many, including me, agree with you.
Not meaning to rub it in, but, IMO, Lancaster IS wrong for the job. His record & too many inappropriate WC picks (Burgess!? What!?) surely confirm this.
No skin off mine, but as a rugby purist, I see it as little short of ‘criminal’, or negligent that, for instance, Cipriani’s deserved 1 shot at a WC, has been torpedoed by a maladroit.
But you never know. I mean, as prev mentioned elsewhere, England got beat bad in 07 & still got to the final!
Don I agree with you re Lancaster, I have long thought he is out of his depth, but I really do feel the doom and gloom merchants are overplaying the situation somewhat.
England, at home have been very consistent. No thumpings to speak of, and it has not been an easy place to win even for NZ. Are we genuine WC contenders? No. Should we be? Probably and perhaps could have been under a more ruthless and experienced coach. However people are now talking as if we are dead certs to lose to Wales and Australia and go out at the group stages. I don’t doubt that this could happen, but our record at Twickenham over the past 2 years suggests otherwise.
If England pull out a performance against a very handy irish side, people will probably spin 360 the other way. Also foolish.
England are good. Competitive but lack the nous IMO.
I largely agree with most of what your saying, despite finding myself agreeing or at least understanding most of what SL does.
However, why should we not consider ourselves genuine WC contenders?
Ignoring NZ, who are by far and away the best team in the world. Who are better than we are? Any other top tier teams are beatable if we play well, we’ve beaten them all other than SA in the past two years.
So either, no one outside NZ are genuine contenders; or surely England are?
I say all that fully expecting NZ to retain the trophy. If they play at 80% of their best, even then any other side will have to be at 100% to even have half a chance to beating them. Unlikely I think.
For some order, this response is to Jacob.
Well I feel pretty outraged @ Cip’s omission which I regd as inexcusable.
However, England will more likely be contenders if they if they top their grp. No easy task.
I suppose any of the top ranked 1/2 dozen or so could also qualify as contenders & logic doesn’t always apply in this guessing game.
I’m less convinced with England’s record than you though as surely current form matters more.
Hope you’re right in respect of NZ though.
As sais, it can be a funny ol’ game.
Cip’s for me is neither one of the top two 10’s or top two 15’s in England. If we were to take 3 10’s as NZ have then he’d have gone. Tough selection but one most would agree with.
Finishing top of the group will be extremely difficult for England. BUT, we have beaten Aus the last two times we’ve played them, same goes for Wales. So why not? At that point we’d play Scotland or Samoa in the 1/4 final. Fair to assume we’d win that? Then Ireland in the semi. Horrible game, but another one where that vital home advantage would likely see us favourites. Obviously followed by the final – toss of a coin at that point.
Don’t get me wrong – I’m aware that is an optimists way of viewing it. But it also hugely plausible based on recent results.
Yes, esp in a WC, England must have a chance, more so as it’s in their backyard.
For some reason, particularly in the latter stages, WCs have been fairly tight affairs. Likely due to stress, pressure, although this is hard to prove.
Anyway, home advantage will surely(?) help England some & It’ll be interesting to see if the pen count stats back this contention up. In tight games this perceived or real advantage can be important. It could even see them top their grp. This will then give them an ‘easier’ route into the biz end of the tourney & they may well have bedded in their back line midfield & lock pairing by then; which will give them more cohesion.
However, it’s a funny old game (/s) & begs the ? as to whether any of the teams in England’s grp are likely to go through with a clean sheet?
Tomorrow should tell more, for both teams, as neither want to or can really afford another loss. The French game in Paris must be worrying for England though as they didn’t win any of the phases; i.e., @ line out, scrum or in the lose. However, surely they can’t be so poor twice on the bounce – & @ home.
And Ireland have lost a bit of momentum so JS will want (& need?) to put a WC marker down with a ‘W’. His team v Wales may have been a bit short of his best line up & so the damage to morale may be less likely to effect them… & his Twickenham team is pretty strong… but away.
Likely to be pretty intense. In theory Ireland ought to shade it, but that’s what I thought about the Wales game too.
So, tranquilisers @ the ready for tomorrow… & the WC! Both teams have a chance for both.
50/50 this Sat? The WC? Mmmm?
Benjit, you’re right about the doom and gloom merchants and also the switch of opinion that we should expect if tomorrows game goes particularly well.
I think though that England ARE genuine WC contenders. They are second favourites – still – with the Bookies.
It doesn’t mean that they will come second of course. It doesn’t even mean that they’ll escape their Group, but it does mean that the moneymen believe they’re genuine contenders, and often where the money lies, there is also cold logic.
Some bookies are offering as little as 7/2 to Win the WC, which is not particularly good for a tournie where 7 teams could realistically win.
Of interest, 8th favourites are Argentina where you can get 66/1
My above was addressed to teecee.
And my ‘good team’ comment was addressed to Colin.
Blast! This rely bizzo frustrates! My above was addresses to Benjit!