England hooker Jamie George has issued a stark warning to his teammates ahead of their highly anticipated clash with New Zealand at Twickenham this Saturday, insisting they must not be dazzled by the All Blacks' formidable reputation.
The Danger of Showing Too Much Respect
George, a key leader in Steve Borthwick's squad, emphasised that many teams fall into the trap of being overly respectful of the All Blacks' incredible history and world-class players. The Saracens star admitted he has been guilty of this himself in the past, but stressed that England cannot afford to make the same mistake this weekend.
"A lot of teams sit back in awe of the All Blacks and their incredible history and their incredible players," George stated. "It's easy to do that and I've done that in the past. We've also got to be very aware that we're back here at Allianz Stadium. We're very proud of playing here and we are going to do everything we can to win."
Team News and Returning Stars
Head coach Steve Borthwick is set to name his starting XV on Thursday, with several players returning from injury. Elliot Daly is now in contention for selection after fully recovering from the fractured forearm he sustained on the British and Irish Lions tour.
Meanwhile, Freddie Steward and Tom Roebuck could also make their comebacks from respective hand and ankle issues, providing Borthwick with welcome selection headaches. The team comes into the match on the back of a convincing 38-18 victory over Fiji, their ninth consecutive win.
A Formidable Challenge Ahead
George was unequivocal about the scale of the challenge facing England, describing New Zealand as "arguably the best team in the world at the minute" with world-class players throughout their squad.
"They are as complete a team as there is out there," he acknowledged. "They're fantastic and they seem to step up a gear when they come to Allianz Stadium. We've got to come up with a clear gameplan that's going to put them under as much pressure as possible and then go out and execute it perfectly because that's what we'll need to do to win."
Despite the challenge, bookmakers have installed England as marginal favourites to secure their first victory over the All Blacks at Twickenham since 2012. A win would also mark a significant turnaround from a difficult 2024 campaign that saw seven successive losses to top-tier opposition.
Building Momentum and Learning to Win
Flanker Tom Curry, who is likely to be restored to the starting back row, highlighted the team's growing momentum, quoting Manchester United legend Roy Keane: "It was Roy Keane who said 'if you're still, you're going backwards'. We're aiming to get better."
Curry reflected on the team's development, noting: "We're starting to learn to win. And it's tiny margins, like Test match rugby is tiny margins. I suppose you have to go through those tough times to learn what it's really like to learn to win."
He identified the most recent Six Nations as a turning point, adding: "After this year's Six Nations it felt like we had so much more to give and it just felt like we were getting better and better. The lads over the summer carried that on and it feels like we've got some genuine momentum. But again, momentum is only good if you carry it on."
England's pursuit of a tenth consecutive victory and a first win over New Zealand in over a decade promises to make Saturday's encounter one of the most compelling matches of the autumn international series.
