Borthwick rings changes for Nations Championship trip to Allianz Stadium and urges players to prioritise team over World Cup audition

Steve Borthwick made extensive alterations to England’s side for Saturday’s Nations Championship match against Japan at Allianz Stadium and warned players auditioning for next year’s World Cup squad to put the team first.

Borthwick made 10 personnel and two positional changes from the team that faced Australia, retaining only Jack van Poortvliet, Henry Slade and Maro Itoje in the same positions. Will Joseph and Max Ojomoh were handed starting roles on the right wing and at inside centre respectively, while Henry Pollock was selected at No 8 for his second start and Northampton scrum-half Archie McParland was named among the replacements.

George Ford was brought in at fly-half and Freddie Steward at full-back, with Fin Smith rested and George Furbank unavailable through injury; Marcus Smith is named on the bench. A string of absences — Ollie Chessum, Furbank, Seb Atkinson and Immanuel Feyi-Waboso — and a desire to manage the squad ahead of next year’s tournament underpinned Borthwick’s selection choices.

Borthwick addressed the World Cup narrative directly, saying: "I’m really aware that the narrative around World Cup selection exists. We don’t avoid it. There’s probably 26 to 28 of the 33-man squad which is pretty clear. Kev Sinfield spoke really well about the performance and how everybody does well when the team performs. The team is always the most important thing. At the same time, it’s the balance between the team, self-sacrifice and self-expression. You’ve got players there that when the moment is right, and they’ll judge the moment, that self-expression comes through. So Will Joseph can get his hands on the ball and back himself in those moments. Go and beat the man in front of him. Similarly for Max Ojomoh. There are always moments where players go and express themselves. Max is one of the most talented players in English rugby. You can see what he can do with the ball in his hands. That’s one of the reasons why I’m looking forward to seeing him out there on Saturday."

Borthwick overhauled the front row with Ellis Genge, Luke Cowan-Dickie and Asher Opoku-Fordjour starting, brought George Martin into the second row, moved Alex Coles to blindside and shifted Ben Earl to openside to accommodate Pollock at No 8; Greg Fisilau, who debuted off the bench last Sunday, is among the replacements.

Itoje, who was named man of the match in the 2018 win over Japan, reiterated the collective message: "If you have 15 players doing their own thing, it won’t look great. And then no one really shines. The message this week is that we want the very best of each and every one of these guys, whether it’s a Will Joseph or a Max Ojomoh. We want them to fully express themselves, but within the context of the team."

Japan’s head coach Eddie Jones, who oversaw England between 2016 and 2022, backed the Brave Blossoms to upset the odds and signalled tactical surprises, saying: "It’s a big week for Japanese rugby. We realise England are a nation we’ve never been able to beat. Everyone knows the record and we want to do something a bit different this week and we’ve trained like that. I’m looking forward to going to Twickenham with this young Japanese team that’s going to play the house down." The piece records Japan have never beaten England in six previous Test meetings and are 40-1 outsiders to produce an upset in the Nations Championship; Jones was also described as England’s most successful coach by win rate at 72%, having won two Six Nations titles including the 2016 Grand Slam and taken England to the 2019 World Cup final. "I had seven good years there," he added. "If you look at the stats, they stand the test of time. There’s no reason why I shouldn’t be pleased to go back to Twickenham."

George Ford, who captained England eight years ago, recalled that earlier match: "It was very disappointing in the first half; our attitude wasn’t quite there. That’s not good when you’re playing for England." He said on Thursday: "There’s individual opportunities and you can’t get away from that. We have addressed that. The big message this week is the team, how you can make the team play well, be a good team-mate. I’ve not really felt like anyone’s on their own agenda. But it was definitely worth addressing to make sure lads don’t put too much pressure on themselves individually."

Borthwick also noted the World Cup schedule when explaining his squad management, with a six-day turnaround between England’s opener against Tonga and their second match against Zimbabwe, a factor in his decisions over rotation and rest.