George succeeded Saracens’ team-mate Owen Farrell as England skipper after the 2023 Rugby World Cup [Getty Images]
Autumn Nations Series: England v New Zealand
Venue: Allianz Stadium, Twickenham Date: Saturday, 2 November Kick-off: 15:10 GMT
Coverage: Listen to live commentary on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra and BBC Sounds, and follow live text commentary on the BBC Sport website and app.
Captain Jamie George has told England’s pack that there can be no repeat of New Zealand’s set-piece superiority when the two sides meet again on Saturday.
England lost two Tests away to the All Blacks in July with the hosts outmuscling George’s side in key areas.
“We were disappointed in the summer, we got scrummed and we don’t like being scrummed,” George told BBC 5 Live.
“We got mauled and we don’t like being mauled.
“We have made it very clear that that is the end of the England forwards being taken to. We want to make sure we put our authority down in that respect.”
Ellis Genge, who missed the July matches through injury, is fit to reclaim the starting loosehead spot for this weekend’s rematch, but the rest of England’s front five remains the same.
Head coach Steve Borthwick said after the 2-0 series defeat in the summer that he was considering fast-tracking some of England’s under-20 World Cup-winning side to shore up the tighthead side of the front row, with Will Stuart coming under pressure and 37-year-old Dan Cole closing in on the end of his career.
Bath’s Billy Sella, Sale’s Asher Opoku-Fordjour and Gloucester’s Afolabi Fasogbon all impressed with powerful performances in that age-grade success, with Fasogbon also coming out on top in an early-season Premiership face-off with Bristol’s Genge.
For now though, Borthwick has kept faith with the veterans.
Stuart, who scored two tries in a 25-25 draw the last time the teams met at Twickenham, starts on Saturday with Cole on the bench.
George says that England’s form in training and a return to Twickenham for the first time since a thunderous 23-22 Six Nations win over Ireland in March have whetted his appetite for the match.
“We performed well out there in New Zealand, didn’t get the results we wanted, but at the same time came away being pretty clear about what we needed to do to win those game,” he said.
“That is what we have to focus on.
“We don’t know how good we can be and I am really excited about where we are at and what I have seen over the last couple of weeks.”
George also said that, unlike team-mate Joe Marler, he is a fan of the haka, even attempting to copy the All Black’s pre-match challenge when he was a child.
“I grew up absolutely loving it,” he said.
“I grew up trying to learn it. It is something I have a huge amount of respect for. I love the theatre that it brings, the atmosphere it generates, the connection with the fans. I think it is brilliant.”
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