Steward Replaces Smith
In the absence of Marcus Smith, Freddie Steward has been recalled to the England starting lineup for Saturday’s World Cup semi-final against South Africa. Smith is out for the entire week due to his inability to train completely this week; Steward has returned to the No. 15 jersey in his place.
Pack Changes
Conversely, Steve Borthwick has substituted vice-captain Ellis Genge and Ollie Chessum with Joe Marler and George Martin, respectively, in the pack, where they have made unexpected debuts. It is Marler’s and Martin’s second start of the tournament. Marler replaced Genge against Japan, and Martin debuted against Chile. The absence of Chessum is surprising, but Martin adds weight to counter the Springboks.
Steward’s Resilience
Borthwick’s decision at fullback was uncomplicated due to Smith’s fitness concerns (as stated by defence coach Kevin Sinfield, he “got his face smashed all over the place” against Fiji last week), but Steward could have been recalled in any case. His 6’2″ height makes him a safer fullback. Since his summer 2021 England Test debut, he has started every Test except the quarterfinal and Chile win.
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Sinfield has also been effusive in his acclaim regarding Steward’s handling of his exclusion in the quarterfinal. “Fred and I have been working together for a while,” the defense instructor stated this week. “I’m relieved that I haven’t been required to engage in many of these interactions in an attempt to pick him up. It is evident that he is disheartened, since no one wants to miss a quarterfinal. However, his response aligns with our anticipations.
“Fred’s absence from the roster last week does not indicate any wrongdoing on his part; on the contrary. He has accomplished a number of commendable and accurate tasks. However, Steve and the coaching staff determined that proceeding with Marcus was the more prudent course of action.”
Key Players and Lineup
In other news, Borthwick has retained twelve players from the team that defeated Fiji, bringing the total number of survivors from the group that was defeated by the Springboks in the 2019 final to eight. Jamie George maintains his position at hooker, while Dan Cole faces South Africa for the first time since the Springboks’ scrum abused him early in the 2019 final when he came off the bench. Maro Itoje joins Martin in the second row, while Courtney Lawes, Tom Curry, and Ben Earl remain back.
Owen Farrell captains from the fly-half, Alex Mitchell returns to scrum-half, and Joe Marchant and Manu Tuilagi remain in the middle. Once more, Jonny May and Elliot Daly are chosen for the flanks. Chessum, Billy Vunipola, Danny Care, George Ford, Ollie Lawrence, Genge, Theo Dan, and Kyle Sinckler are front-row substitutes.
Anticipating the Challenge
Borthwick said, After a great few days of practise in Paris, we are excited to face the world champions and number one team. Despite challenging circumstances, each player has won this competition, helping the squad improve. We’ll face a great squad in South Africa this weekend, so we must play well.
“The players will, without a doubt, enthusiastically embrace the challenge of knockout rugby played under the lights in Paris.” “As they have in every match this tournament, these guys will give their best to win the semi-final.”
