sport

Preview: England v New Zealand

The old guard: Shaw and Worsley

England play host to New Zealand on Saturday for what is the white rose's final chance of claiming a meaningful autumn result in 2009.

Being brutally honest as the last leaves continue to fall, it has seemed like the former world beaters have been categorised 'in transition' for over half a decade now since that special crop of capable players went their separate ways.

A record of 31 wins in 68 Tests is hardly the form of 2011 challengers, is it?

The re-building talk and safety net that comes with it has to stop as HQ regulars become increasingly frustrated at their side's predicament - a narrow win over Argentina did little to lift spirits in what was a dismal spectacle of kicking.

Add on to their on-the-field instabilities and, at times, clueless game structure the fact that whenever the camera pans to Martin Johnson or another member of his coaching setup, their facial and/or bodily expressions paint the picture of a machine that has some serious flaws under the bonnet.

Just the prospect of facing a haka before 80 minutes against All Blacks this week then.

"New Zealand are never worse than very good," said Johnson, who starts with Ayoola Erinle just 12 months after the centre was sent out on loan to Championship club Nottingham by Leicester.

"We need consistency as a group. Pressure is what it is all about and you do that on the field by being a united group of players. To beat the All Blacks you have to have a solid 80-minute game.

"They will get points on you at some point and you have to be resilient enough to bounce back."

Let's get one thing straight now though, it will not be a walkover for the All Blacks before they head off to face the might of France next week.

England will look to carry on from where Italy left at the San Siro in what was a beautiful example of throwing wounding body shots against a bigger opponent.

Tom Donnelly, Brad Thorn, Owen Franks, Andrew Hore and finally Tony Woodcock will this week have their work cut out after what happened in Milan and it will be interesting watching how they fare against the likes of Simon Shaw and Steve Borthwick. However, Duncan Bell is no Castrogiovanni.

What of New Zealand as a whole? The next two weekends is sure to be their acid test as Daniel Carter, Richie McCaw, Conrad Smith and Ma'a Nonu all return from hereon-in and if that quad can function, Graham Henry would find himself coaching the IRB's top ranked side at 2009's conclusion.

"They'll obviously take us on up front, they're a big pack and Wilkinson will kick them around the park, but I think they'll run the ball a bit more than those other two sides we've played," was his Assistant Steve Hansen's view on how he feels Saturday's match will pan out.

"We always respect them. Twickenham's not an easy place to play and England are a proud side.

"We've all copped our bit of flak this year and we've managed to bounce back from it so I'm sure they're capable of doing the same thing."

As the aforementioned Hansen expects, England will show pride with Mark Cueto and Ugo Monye now back in more familiar club roles of full-back and wing respectively. But will the other thirteen men in white on the field turn up as a team as they look to shock and stop an All Black Grand Slam showdown in Marseille?

Ones to watch:

For England: What the Azzurri scrum did to New Zealand's tight five late on will have given England large chunks of belief and hope. And the return of Simon Shaw to the engine room will of course be one area Johnson has looked to utilise during the week. Finally a strong-looking lock partner for captain Steve Borthwick to feed off. Time to settle on this combination one feels.

For New Zealand: Wellington centre Conrad Smith still remains one of the most underrated players in the international game in my eyes, with strong defence matching his attacking 'snake' runs week-in week-out. The Dan Carter, Ma'a Nonu and Smith balance is certainly one to keep an eye on.

Head-to-head: Not a doubt where the general consensus was for this section - Jonny Wilkinson up against Daniel Carter. Surprisingly enough, Saturday's game will be the first time these two have met in an England v New Zealand clash and it promises to be very interesting. Carter's familiarity with those outside could give him the edge but if Wilkinson puts points on the board, this personal battle could go either way.

Recent results:

2008: New Zealand won 32-6 in London
2008: New Zealand won 44-12 in Christchurch
2008: New Zealand won 37-20 in Auckland
2006: New Zealand won 41-20 in London
2005: New Zealand won 23-19 in London
2004: New Zealand won 36-12 in Auckland
2004: New Zealand won 36-3 in Dunedin
2003: England won 15-13 in Wellington
2002: England won 31-28 in London
1999: New Zealand won 30-16 in London
1998: New Zealand won 40-10 in Auckland
1998: New Zealand won 64-22 in Dunedin

Prediction: England need a performance like the one that shocked France at HQ in Six Nations 2009 if they are to upset a pretty much full-strength AB XV. I can't see it - New Zealand by 16 points!

The teams:

England: 15 Mark Cueto, 14 Matt Banahan, 13 Dan Hipkiss, 12 Ayoola Erinle, 11 Ugo Monye, 10 Jonny Wilkinson, 9 Paul Hodgson, 8 James Haskell, 7 Lewis Moody, 6 Joe Worsley, 5 Steve Borthwick (c), 4 Simon Shaw, 3 Duncan Bell, 2 Dylan Hartley, 1 Tim Payne.
Replacements: 16 Steve Thompson, 17 David Wilson, 18 Louis Deacon, 19 Tom Croft, 20 Danny Care, 21 Shane Geraghty, 22 Mathew Tait.

New Zealand: 15 Mils Muliaina, 14 Zac Guildford, 13 Conrad Smith, 12 Ma'a Nonu, 11 Sitiveni Sivivatu, 10 Dan Carter, 9 Jimmy Cowan , 8 Kieran Read, 7 Richie McCaw (c), 6 Adam Thomson , 5 Tom Donnelly, 4 Brad Thorn, 3 Owen Franks, 2 Andrew Hore, 1 Tony Woodcock.
Replacements: 16 Corey Flynn / Aled de Malmanche, 17 John Afoa, 18 Anthony Boric, 19 Jerome Kaino, 20 Andy Ellis, 21 Stephen Donald, 22 Tamati Ellison.

Date: Saturday, November 21
Venue: Twickenham
Kick-off: 14:30 GMT
Referee: Jonathan Kaplan (South Africa)
Assistant referees: Alan Lewis (Ireland), Simon McDowell (Ireland)
Television match officials: Nigel Whitehouse (Wales)
Assessor: Patrick Robin (France)

By Adam Kyriacou