Live match centre for England v South Africa Rugby World Cup 2023 Semi Final.

19 Oct 2023 | 6 min |

Semi-final Preview: England v South Africa

Everything you need to know ahead of England Men's semi-final clash with South Africa in Paris.

Steve Borthwick's men are the only team in the last four of the Rugby World Cup to have reached the semi-finals unbeaten in the tournament, having topped their pool with wins over Argentina, Japan, Chile and Samoa before emerging victorious against Fiji in their quarter-final in Marseille.

Manu Tuilagi and Joe Marchant went over for England's two tries, while 20 points from the boot of Owen Farrell secured victory against a spirited Fiji side.

South Africa edged hosts France 28-29 at the Stade de France to secure their spot in the semi-final. They finished as runners-up of Pool B despite losing 8-13 to Ireland in Paris, earning knockout qualification through victories against Scotland, Romania and Tonga.

When?	Saturday 21 October
Where?	Stade de France, Paris
Kick off	20:00 BST

The winner of this semi-final will play in the Rugby World Cup final (28 October), facing the winner of Friday's clash between Argentina and New Zealand, who overcame Wales and Ireland in their respective quarter-finals to reach the last four.

WHERE TO WATCH

ITV will be broadcasting every Rugby World Cup fixture live.
For the travelling rugby fan, check out our supporter's guide to Paris.

VIEWS FROM CAMP

Kevin Sinfield: "We're really excited for the weekend. South Africa are a top team, we've seen that in their previous fixtures. The physicality that they bring. France certainly turned up to that game and it's a great showcase for what rugby is all about. We knew that getting to this point would be a tough challenge and we have the utmost respect for them. They play some great rugby, they know what they're about, and we're up for the challenge.

"A lot has changed in four years. Some of the players may use that final defeat in 2019, and some won't be bothered by it at all. We're in 2023 now, and we're in Paris. Throughout the last few weeks we've made huge improvements and we know where we need to be at the weekend if we want to get the job done."

Ollie Chessum: "We're massively excited. These are the games you want to be a part of, against the big teams on the biggest stage. They've got some unbelievable players in their pack who bring an exceptional level of physicality, so it's up to us to get out there and compete against it.

PARIS, FRANCE - OCTOBER 17: Ollie Chessum of England speaks to the media following a training session at Institut National du Sport on October 17, 2023 in Paris, France. (Photo by Dan Mullan/Getty Images)

"Week by week we've grown as a group and got better in various aspects of our game, so it's about bringing that level of physicality but also the execution at the weekend."

TEAM NEWS

England

15. Freddie Steward, 14. Jonny May , 13. Joe Marchant, 12. Manu Tuilagi, 11. Elliot Daly, 10. Owen Farrell (C), 9. Alex Mitchell, 1. Joe Marler, 2. Jamie George, 3. Dan Cole, 4. Maro Itoje, 5. George Martin, 6. Courtney Lawes, 7. Tom Curry, 8. Ben Earl

Replacements

16. Theo Dan, 17. Ellis Genge, 18. Kyle Sinckler, 19. Ollie Chessum, 20. Billy Vunipola, 21. Danny Care, 22. George Ford, 23. Ollie Lawrence

South Africa

15. Damien Willemse, 14. Kurt-lee Arendse, 13. Jesse Kriel, 12. Damien de Allende, 11. Cheslin Kolbe, 10. Manie Libbok, 9. Cobus Reinach, 1. Steven Kitshoff, 2. Bongi Mbonambi, 3. Frans Malherbe, 4. Eben Etzebeth, 5. Franco Mostert, 6. Siya Kolisi (C), 7. Pieter-Steph du Toit, 8. Duane Vermeulen

Replacements

16. Deon Fourie, 17. Ox Nche, 18. Vincent Koch, 19. RG Snyman, 20. Kwagga Smith, 21. Faf de Klerk, 22. Handre Pollard, 23. Willie le Roux

STATS

England are the only team to have averaged 30+ kicks in play per game (33.0) and have retained possession from 20% of their kicks, the highest such rate of any side.

South Africa (8.0) and England (8.6) have conceded fewer penalties per game than any other sides to have reached the semi-finals of this year’s Rugby World Cup, with only France and Japan (7 each) averaging fewer overall.

England’s Ben Earl has made the joint-most line breaks (5, also Peato Mauvaka) and the beaten the second-most defenders (17) of any forward in this year’s Rugby World Cup – Earl has also completed at least 16 more tackles than any of his teammates (60, 8th most overall).

South Africa’s Cheslin Kolbe has averaged 16.7 metres per carry from his 19 carries at this year’s Rugby World Cup, more than any other player to have run with the ball on 15+ occasions.

PREVIOUS ENCOUNTERS

2018: South Africa 23-12 England

2018: South Africa 10-25 England

2018: England 12-11 South Africa

2019: England 12-32 South Africa

2021: England 27-26 South Africa

2022: England 13-27 South Africa

FIXTURES AND RESULTS

Summer Series

Wales 20-9 England

England 19-17 Wales

Ireland 29-10 England

England 22-30 Fiji

Rugby World Cup 2023 - Group Stages

England 27-10 Argentina

England 34-12 Japan

England 71-0 Chile

England 18-17 Samoa

Quarter-Final

England 30-24 Fiji

Semi-Final

England v South Africa - Stade de France, Paris - 20:00 BST

Rugby World Cup

21 Oct 2023 | 4 min |

England beaten by Springboks in semi-final

England lost to South Africa 15-16 in their semi-final clash at Stade de France, and will now play Argentina in the Bronze Medal Match next weekend.

Fifteen points from the boot of captain Owen Farrell was not enough, as the World Champions snatched victory in the final minutes courtesy of a Handre Pollard penalty.

Farrell bagged his first penalty inside the opening two minutes; Pieter-Steph du Toit went off his feet at the breakdown, and allowed the fly-half to fire over the 30-metre effort. The Saracens man doubled England's lead on the 10-minute mark, as the Springboks leaked another ruck penalty close to their posts.

PARIS, FRANCE - OCTOBER 21: Owen Farrell of England celebrates a turnover during the Rugby World Cup France 2023 match between England and South Africa at Stade de France on October 21, 2023 in Paris, France. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)

South Africa had two opportunities to convert penalties of their own but turned down the shot at posts, opting to go to the corner, and on both occasions were out-muscled in the subsequent mauls - England showing huge passion in defence to clear their lines.

The third penalty awarded to South Africa inside England's half was nudged over by Libbok, but Farrell was on hand moments later to knock over his third attempt. Libbok was taken off after half hour on the clock, and Pollard was quick to introduce himself to the Test with a straightforward penalty.

Farrell claimed his twelfth point as the last act of the first half, and the stats at the break showed a dominant English performance as Borthwick's men boasted more possession, metres made and carries - the Match Centre highlighted Courtney Lawes as a standout performer.

The Springboks rolled out the replacements at the resumption in a bid to wrestle back momentum, as both teams struggled to adapt to the slippery conditions, but on 53 minutes with England not enjoying much success in attack, Farrell calmly fired a 40-metre drop goal over the sticks to open up a nine point lead.

South Africa's scrum began to show its quality as a catalyst for penalties, and Pollard was on hand to nail one of them into England's corner. From the resulting lineout, replacement Deon Fourie peeled off and was brought down just shy of the line. A quick recycle saw the ball shift to RG Snyman, who powered over for the game's first try. The extras were added by Pollard and the deficit cut to two points.

Another Springbok scrum penalty afforded the men in green a shot at the sticks with four minutes left in the Test, and Pollard knocked it over from half way to confirm the win.