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England face the New Zealand Haka

England Men

2 Jul 2024 | 2 min |

England team to face New Zealand in Dunedin

Head coach Steve Borthwick has named the England team to play New Zealand at the Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin on Saturday.

There is two changes to the starting XV that beat Japan in Tokyo, as Joe Marler and Will Stuart make up the front row alongside captain Jamie George. 

Prop Fin Baxter and wing Ollie Sleightholme are poised to win their first England caps from the bench. Alex Coles and Ben Spencer are also called into the match day 23, alongside Theo Dan, Dan Cole, Tom Curry and Fin Smith.

Cole will win his 114th cap to equal Jason Leonard as England's second most capped men's player.

Team to play New Zealand

Starting

15. George Furbank

14. Immanuel Feyi-Waboso

13. Henry Slade – vice-captain

12. Ollie Lawrence

11. Tommy Freeman

10. Marcus Smith

9. Alex Mitchell

1. Joe Marler – vice-captain   

2. Jamie George – captain   

3. Will Stuart

4. Maro Itoje – vice-captain

5. George Martin

6. Chandler Cunningham-South

7. Sam Underhill

8. Ben Earl – vice-captain

Replacements

16. Theo Dan

17. Fin Baxter

18. Dan Cole

19. Alex Coles

20. Tom Curry

21. Ben Spencer

22. Fin Smith

23. Ollie Sleightholme

Borthwick on Selection

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