Prediction: Steve Borthwick's England team to play South Africa in Autumn Series

11/11/2024 11:31 AM

England endured a second gut-wrenching defeat in the Autumn Nations Series, as the Wallabies scored the decisive match-winning try in the final play at the Allianz Stadium. It was replacement Australian speedster Max Jorgensen who took the plaudits, as he rounded off a shocking finale, and secured a dramatic win for Joe Schmidt’s side.

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Steve Borthwick is now in the unenviable position of rallying his squad, as he gets set to pick his match day 23 for the third round of the Series. The third consecutive weekend could well be England’s toughest challenge of the month, as none other than South Africa are set to descend on South West London, and bring the fight to England this Saturday.

The Springboks commenced their own tour of the Northern Hemisphere this past weekend, as they triumphed in style against Scotland. Rassie Erasmus orchestrated an impressive game-plan, which saw the back-to-back World Champions hand the Scots a significant 32-15 defeat at their fabled Murrayfield cauldron.

The Springboks have set the tone of their intentions, and England have this all important training week to prepare for the battle. With England picking up a few injuries in their recent defeat to Wallabies, some changes to personnel will take place, after an unchanged starting XV retained their spots from the opening round against New Zealand. Here are RUCK’s predictions for who Steve Borthwick will select, as England take on the Springboks this Saturday.

BACK THREE

15. George Furbank (Northampton Saints)

14. Tommy Freeman (Northampton Saints)

11. Elliot Daly (Saracens)

There is an enforced change in the back-three, after Manny Feyi-Waboso’s tough day at the office against the Wallabies. The Exeter Chiefs man was withdrawn on two occasions, with Ollie Sleightholme yo-yoing off the bench in replacement. Feyi-Waboso was initially removed for a HIA, yet the wing passed the assessment and was back on after the half-time break.

It would be his efforts in halting Jeremy Williams’ dive for the try-line that would further injure Feyi-Waboso. The Chiefs man was badly hurt as he clattered into the lock, with the collision forcing the flyer’s permanent removal mid-way through the second half. Whilst there is no denying the impressive efforts that Ollie Sleightholme brought to the Allianz in his try-scoring appearence, we can see Steve Borthwick choosing the versatility and experience of Elliot Daly to start against the Springboks.

Even though Daly has not featured so far this Autumn, we can see his ability to play across both wings, fullback and the centres playing to his selection in an expectedly physical contest. The remaining outside backs go unchanged, with the Northampton duo of George Furbank and Tommy Freeman back in the starting XV. We predict Borthwick to select Freddie Steward as his number 23, to bring his added size, power and high ball specialism to the Springboks clash.

CENTRES

12. Ollie Lawrence (Bath Rugby)

13. Henry Slade (Exeter Chiefs)

Whilst we don’t expect Borthwick to make any changes to his midfield personnel, we can foresee his centres swapping back to their regular positions. Borthwick expressed how the decision to swap Henry Slade and Ollie Lawrence around their inside and outside centre spots was entirely player led.

The two West Country centres could well go back to their more comfortable roles with a Test the level of South Africa taking them on this Saturday. So, we have opted for the two to retain their spots in the starting line-up for a third week in a row, with Elliot Daly and Tommy Freeman the available covering options with no replacement centre named on the bench.

HALFBACKS

9. Ben Spencer (Bath Rugby)

10. Marcus Smith (Harlequins)

Marcus Smith put in another excellent performance this past weekend, as he kept England’s points tally ticking over with some strong place kicking. Smith led his back-line with a relentless pace, and he retains his space in the 10 jersey from our perspective. The will for Smith to be England’s fly half was audible at the Allianz, as pockets of boos rang out when George Ford was shown to be getting ready to come off the bench against Australia.

However, those very same supporters swapped their boos for cheers, as Smith then moved back to fullback with George Furbank departing the pitch. We can see Borthwick selecting George Ford once again on the bench, with the Autumn continuing to be a frustrating season for Fin Smith.

We can see Fin Smith and fellow frustrated halfback Jack van Poortvleit featuring in the upcoming England A match against Australia A on Sunday, with Ben Spencer and replacement Harry Randall the predicted scrum halves to face the Boks on Saturday.

FRONT ROW

1. Ellis Genge (Bristol Bears)

2. Jamie George (Saracens)

3. Will Stuart (Bath Rugby)

Once again, no changes in the starting XV, with England’s front row set for a tough day against the powerhouse Springboks. There is no downplaying the ferocity of the South African front row, with the combination of Ellis Genge, Jamie George and Will Stuart expected to start before Steve Borthwick’s own ‘bomb squad’ is unleashed for the matches latter stages.

We see no changes in the players that exploded off the bench against Australia, with Dan Cole and Fin Baxter bringing a unique blend of experience and youth to take on the reinforced South African pack. Genge was the stand-out scrummager against the Wallabies, as he won three scrum penalties, with two of which coming against the tight-head dubbed the ‘Tongan Thor’, 135kg Taniela Tupou.

We have made an alteration to the replacement hooker, after Theo Dan was rested against Australia. Luke Cowan-Dickie made his England return off the bench, however the Sale Shark had a limited impact against the Wallabies. We can see the previously proven combo of George being replaced by his Saracens understudy, being the reasoning behind the selected 16 shirt.

LOCKS

4. Maro Itoje (Saracens)

5. George Martin (Leicester Tigers)

No changes are expected in the locks, with Maro Itoje and George Martin expected to retain their spots in Steve Borthwick’s starting XV. The duo have established a solid partnership in the engine room of the England scrum, with Itoje’s Saracens teammate Nick Isiekwe predicted to be back waiting on the side-line for a replacement appearence.

There is some contention for places in the locks, with versatile forward Ollie Chessum remaining on the side-lines with an ankle injury. However, we can’t see Borthwick making many altercations this week, despite having the likes of Bath lock Charlie Ewels and Northampton’s Alex Coles reinforcing the second row ranks at Pennyhill Park.

BACK ROW

6. Chandler Cunningham-South (Harlequins)

7. Sam Underhill (Bath Rugby)

8. Ben Earl (Saracens)

There has been an alteration to the England back row, following the nasty head injury to Tom Curry. The Sale Shark man started the first two Tests this Autumn, after spending the past season recovering from a career-threatening hip injury. However, Curry’s England return came to an early end this past weekend, as he was knocked unconscious by Rob Valentini in a brutal tackle gone wrong.

Whilst Curry’s recovery is going well by all accounts, he will understandably play no part in this weekend’s game against South Africa. We have given the nod to Sam Underhill to start on the openside flank, in a straight swap with his Under-Curry brother in arms. After another barnstorming performance for England, we have also selected Chandler Cunningham-South to retain his place in the starting six jersey.

This leaves Ben Earl to round off the starting England XV once again, with his proven adaptability expected to be called upon once again this weekend. The Saracen moved across the back row and over to the flank after Tom Curry was withdrawn, with Alex Dombrandt the specialist eight-man predicted to be named on the bench once again.

REPLACEMENTS

16. Theo Dan (Saracens)

17. Fin Baxter (Harlequins)

18. Dan Cole (Leicester Tigers)

19. Nick Isiekwe (Saracens)

20. Alex Dombrandt (Harlequins)

21. Harry Randall (Bristol Bears)

22. George Ford (Sale Sharks)

23. Freddie Steward (Leicester Tigers)

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