A resounding victory for England to lift the gloom of a frustrating autumn. While the quality of the opposition was nothing like they encountered in the three previous defeats, there were enough positive points to give Steve Borthwick something to build on going into the Six Nations.
Nine tries in all, six by England’s forwards, represented a display convincing enough to ease the pressure on Borthwick.
A big decision is going to have to be made about their defensive strategy, which leaked two tries by Naoto Saito and Kazuki Himeno, while Japan were able to make ground too often by getting around England’s blitz. It simply has not worked this autumn and England’s defence coach Joe El-Abd must consider a more nuanced approach as better teams than Japan would have scored at least four tries today.
But more tantalising is the fly-half decision. Marcus Smith has been England’s outstanding attacker this autumn but Fin Smith made a hugely impressive impact during his second-half cameo, with England’s attacking shape looking more fluid and cohesive. It would be a bold attacking strategy, particularly with England facing Ireland in Dublin in their Six Nations opener, but the question hangs in the air: should Marcus Smith be switched to full-back to give Borthwick’s side two playmakers?
And Tom Roebuck has also put himself forward with an impactful cameo. Perhaps that is the greatest take-away. England now have more players pushing for places. After a calendar year that finishes with just five wins from 12 Test matches, that is at least something positive.
The victory was founded on England’s dominance up front, and there was ruthlessness about their approach, particularly in the first half, with four of their five tries coming from forwards.
The second half after a muddling period, saw England put together their most impressive attacking spell of the autumn. Tommy Freeman’s behind-the-back pass for George Furbank’s try was sensational while the introduction of Fin Smith injected fresh impetus to leave the Twickenham faithful in great voice for the first time this autumn.
06:28 PM GMT
The thoughts of England captain Jamie George
06:26 PM GMT
How Sleightholme is following in father Jon’s footsteps
Before Ollie Sleightholme made his England debut this summer in New Zealand, the team’s captain, Jamie George, asked Sleightholme’s father, Jon, to send him a message which could be read out in the team meeting. One part of that message explained that while Sleightholme snr was immensely proud, he felt something greater than that. “Proud as a word doesn’t do it justice. What I said in that message was that I felt really privileged, because we were joining a club of fathers and sons that had played for their country. That just feels very special to be a part of,” Sleightholme snr says.
Jon Sleightholme won 12 England caps and scored four tries in the mid-1990s, including the only try in England’s win over Ireland to wrap up the 1996 Five Nations title at Twickenham.
For more from Ben Coles, click here.
06:25 PM GMT
Steve Borthwick speaking post-match
“I think in large parts we got what we wanted. We have amazing supporters and we wanted to deliver a win for them, which we did. I think we have stepped forward in a lot of areas and have gained experience. The overriding emotion is of frustration. Some of the attacking play has been tremendous and some of the tries we have scored have been excellent. I feel very positive about this coaching team going forward. We have done well with a short period of time. This team is moving in the right direction. The average age today was 25 and we have a huge upside. If you look at how this team has transitioned over the last 12 months we have moved enormously. This team is on the right path. We need time to build cohesion. It is a privilege to be the England head coach. We have made a lot of growth in the last year and we will continue to grow.”
06:20 PM GMT
More of your views
Sam Bates: “Finally Fin Smith has had some game time. Nice to see him getting the ball out wide quickly allowing good finishers like Roebuck to have a good run in. Just imagine if we had a fit Feyi Waboso starting and with that space.”
Geoff Anderson: “England A looking enterprising it would have been a much more productive game for those players to have played!”
David Taylor: “I know it was late in the game but it was a breath of fresh air when Fin Smith came on.”
Ace Williams: “Japan will take more away from that game than England will.”
06:15 PM GMT
Some of the best bits from the final half of England’s 2024
06:13 PM GMT
Autumn player ratings
Our deputy rugby union correspondent Daniel Schofield has had his say on how the England players have fared across the Autumn Nations Series.
06:10 PM GMT
Your reaction
Ben Francis: “A game we should have won…woohoo. There were still errors that a half decent side would have slaughtered us for. Still look bang average. What is slade still doing in the squad? He won’t be in the next WC? Pointless.”
It will end in tiers: “Perfect game to start Finn Smith at 10 and see some new faces which would have made it a tighter contest potentially. We learnt nothing.”
Paul Brooks: “That is literally the worst possible autumn series, the worst of all worlds: We didn’t win any of the big games. We didn’t learn about new players. They can hide behind the Japan victory, so we won’t get rid of Borthwick.”
Jerry Markham: “Not sure this lets Borthwick off the hook, tbh. Our Defence is pourous. As has been shown by everybody Eng have played this series. Even a very under powered Japan cut through twice. Some great play to be sure but Ireland next….”
Daniel Rone: “Borewick is still on borrowed time. This game simply papered over the cracks. I hope that the 6 nations results show that he isn’t the man to lead England going forward and the RFU grow a backbone and dismiss him.”
Keep your views coming in at the bottom of the blog.
06:07 PM GMT
Japanese pay their respects
06:01 PM GMT
Marcus Smith speaking to TNT
05:57 PM GMT
The thoughts of the player of the match Ollie Sleightholme
05:55 PM GMT
This weekend’s Autumn Nations fixtures
Friday:
France 37-23 Argentina
Saturday:
Ireland 52-17 Fiji
Wales 12-45 South Africa
Italy 11-29 New Zealand
Today:
Scotland 27-13 Australia
England 59-14 Japan
05:53 PM GMT
Full-time
That is it at Twickenham and England comprehensively beat Japan 59-14. An expected result but a result nonetheless that they really needed after five straight defeats. Steve Borthwick defeats his predecessor, Eddie Jones. That rounds off 2024 for England. Next up for them is a trip to Dublin to take on Ireland in the first game of the 2025 Six Nations at the start of February.
05:51 PM GMT
79 mins: England 59 Japan 14
The lineout from Cowan-Dickie is not straight so a let-off for Japan.
05:50 PM GMT
78 mins: England 59 Japan 14
Japan change their bind in the maul and England have the penalty. To the corner they go with under two minutes left…
05:50 PM GMT
77 mins: England 59 Japan 14
England have a lineout inside the Japan 22. After a few phases, F Smith puts a little grubber through but Japan gather and clear, but only to the edge of their own 22.
05:44 PM GMT
73 mins: England 59 Japan 14
Japan make a mess of the lineout and knock on.
England win the penalty from the subsequent scrum.
05:43 PM GMT
72 mins: England 59 Japan 14
England concede a penalty and Japan kick to the corner. England do well to hold up and disrupt the maul but Japan get it out. They then win a penalty as England are caught offside.
05:41 PM GMT
TRY! Roebuck scores first England try
Another quality try and F Smith and Roebuck combine again. The Northampton fly-half picks out the Sale winger with a delicate crossfield kick. Roebuck hands off his defender and cuts back inside to beat the final defender to go over under the posts. Really quality assist from F Smith and Roebuck finishes with aplomb. An easy conversion follows for M Smith.
A distinct Northampton Saints feel to this final quarter. Following Furbank’s try, Fin Smith is making an impressive impact at fly-half with Marcus Smith having dropped to full-back. Tom Roebuck is enjoying a fine cameo too.
05:37 PM GMT
TRY! Cowan-Dickie doubles up
Straight from the set-piece, after a couple of passes around the back, F Smith throws a delightful pass out to Roebuck, who sprints towards the line. He cuts inside and is brought down just short of the line. Not many phases later though Cowan-Dickie powers over for his second try in quick succession, which brings up the England 50. The conversion is good.
05:34 PM GMT
TRY! Japan score neat second
That is a quality try from the visistors. Tatafu finds Osada with a cute offload and Japan are into the England 22. They recycle it quickly and another couple of quality offloads allows Himeno to go over untouched. The conversion is successful.
05:31 PM GMT
61 mins: England 45 Japan 7
Slade’s day is done as Roebuck comes on. That will probably see Freeman move inside from the wing into outside centre with Roebuck coming onto the wing.
05:30 PM GMT
TRY! Cowan-Dickie powers over
England win the lineout and set the maul but it breaks down as Japan sack it illegally. Cowan-Dickie breaks out and bursts through a few defenders to reach out to the line and score. He showed terrific strength to power through. M Smith’s conversion hits the post and is no good.
05:29 PM GMT
58 mins: England 40 Japan 7
Japan are caught offside and England have a penalty not far outside the Japan 22. Loosehead prop Okabe is the guilty man. England go to the corner.
05:26 PM GMT
55 mins: England 40 Japan 7
A special moment for young Sale prop Asher Opoku-Fordjour, who is on for his England debut. The 20-year-old is a special, special talent and replaces Stuart at tighthead prop. F Smith is also on, with Furbank the man to be replaced. M Smith has gone to fullback and F Smith has slotted in at fly-half.
05:24 PM GMT
TRY! Furbank scores after stunning Freeman offload
That is brilliant from Freeman. A Japanese lineout is overthrown and Cowan-Dickie gets his hands on it. He passes out to Slade, who puts the kick through. Freeman gets on the end of it and, before he goes into touch, he flicks an offload out of the back to find his Northampton teammate Furbank who goes over untouched. Fantastic from Freeman. Smith cannot get the conversion.
England have lost their way in this third quarter, even conceding a scrum penalty. It is their defence however that is letting Japan into the game, with the visitors twice making ground on the edge again. At least a moment of brilliance by Tommy Freeman by which his back flip pass to his Northampton team-mate George Furbank results in another try.
05:19 PM GMT
50 mins: England 35 Japan 7
England have been dominant in the scrum today but this time it is Japan who win the penalty at the scrum. Japan kick into the England 22.
They go through a number of phases inside the England 22 but a loose chip over the top is caught by Furbank, who calls for the mark and clears.
05:17 PM GMT
48 mins: England 35 Japan 7
Double change for England as van Poortvliet and George come off for Randall and Cowan-Dickie.
05:16 PM GMT
47 mins: England 35 Japan 7
Japan work it well out wide and Osada has space out wide on the right to sprint into the England half. However they knock on. Against an opponent like Japan they will not be punished as much as they should be but England’s defence is having issues; a feature of this Autumn. Do England need to change their ways defensively because it is not working?
05:12 PM GMT
44 mins: England 35 Japan 7
Japan make good ground into the England 22 and have another penalty, around 10 metres out from the England line. They go to the corner.
Itoje steals it at the lineout and England clear.
05:11 PM GMT
42 mins: England 35 Japan 7
A very sloppy start to the second half from England as they compound errors and now concede a penalty on the edge of their own 22. Japan take it quickly and kick through towards the England line, where they nearly gather it but Smith does enough to put them off. T Curry slides onto the ball and England do a really good job to clear their lines and exit their 22.
05:08 PM GMT
Second half
We are back under way at Twickenham. Japan have made two changes at the break and both are in the front-row; Matsuoka is on at hooker and Tamefusa is on at tighthead prop.
05:07 PM GMT
HT verdict
It has not been pretty, but England are in complete control and at least have shown their ruthless instinct by persisting with exploiting Japan’s set piece inferiority. Four tries by the forwards underscores this, with three (Sam Underhill and two by Jamie George) coming from line-out pmaul’s while Ben Earl’s score came from a line-out strike move that did not come off against Australia but worked beautifully today. It is the game plan that England have attempted to impose all autumn but are able to execute with much greater ease because of the quality of the opposition. The one frustration is the blitz defence, that continues to malfunction too often. Naoto Saito’s try was a system break down but also, alarmingly, there does not appear to be a voice directing the forwards to their positions, with too many out of the game on the narrow side of the ruck in the build-up to the try. It is impossible to imagine Owen Farrell allowing that to happen.
05:02 PM GMT
Underhill injured
04:58 PM GMT
This weekend’s Autumn Nations fixtures
Friday:
France 37-23 Argentina
Saturday:
Ireland 52-17 Fiji
Wales 12-45 South Africa
Italy 11-29 New Zealand
Today:
Scotland 27-13 Australia
England 35-7 Japan (HT)
04:53 PM GMT
Half-time
That is it for the first half and England have a commanding 35-7 lead at the break.
04:52 PM GMT
39 mins: England 35 Japan 7
The chance is gone for Japan as Makisi is penalised for a neck roll on Stuart.
04:51 PM GMT
38 mins: England 35 Japan 7
That is a real coach-killer for England. Just after they score a try, they concede a penalty. Japan have a lineout inside the England 22 with just under two minutes remaining.
04:50 PM GMT
TRY! Sleightholme finishes off neat England move
England hit back immediately. Lawrence beats a few defenders and offloads to Stuart. The Bath tighthead flings a long pass out wide to Cunningham-South, who then offloads to Sleightholme. He puts a cute little grubber through and gets on the end of it to score in the corner. Smith gets the conversion from out wide.
04:47 PM GMT
TRY! Saito hits back for visitors
Japan have barely had the ball in this first half but they have cut England apart there. From their own half, they send it through the backs to the right and a neat dummy from Riley sends the visitors racing through towards the England 22. It is a simple two-on-one to execute and they do so as Riley passes inside to Saito, who goes over. Saito converts his own try. England’s defence was a mess there but fair play to Japan.
England simply can’t keep persisting with this blitz defence at all costs. It is without nuance or ability to react to what is in front of them. The risk continues to vastly outweigh the reward. The first time Japan get to the edge, a dummy by Dylan Riley allowed him to easily evade George Furbank after Henry Slade had shot up inside him. Without any adequate scramble, Naoto Saito raced over for a try that was easy on the eye, but a nightmare for England’s defence coach Joe El-Abd.
04:44 PM GMT
TRY! George doubles up
England score yet again from the rolling maul! The lineout is won and the maul is set. England have to remain patient but eventually they get it going and George cannot be stopped. The England captain has his second try of the game. Smith’s conversion is good and England are not far off averaging a point a minute.
04:43 PM GMT
30 mins: England 21 Japan 0
Japan have the scrum after the knock-on but they are shunted back and England win the penalty just five metres from the Japan line. Smith goes to the corner…
04:42 PM GMT
29 mins: England 21 Japan 0
Freeman thinks he is over in the corner and the try is awarded but, after the conversion is taken, the TMO steps in which he is allowed to do before the game restarts. van Poortvliet is found to have knocked on at the base of the ruck before it was shipped out to Freeman on the wing so the try is chalked off.
04:38 PM GMT
27 mins: England 21 Japan 0
England’s scrum dominates and they win a penalty on halfway. England, to be expected, are in total control of this match. Smith finds touch inside the Japanese 22.
04:34 PM GMT
TRY! George rumbles over
England win the lineout, set the maul and there is no denying England and their captain there. George goes over for England’s third try inside the opening 25 minutes. Smith tucks his conversion over and England lead 21-0; a commanding lead already.
Brawn not brains has given England control. Two tries in succession from line-out mauls, by Sam Underhill and Jamie George, has taken the game away from Japan. The blustery conditions are challenging, but with this comfortable platform, the Twickenham faithful will expect to be entertained with some more expansive play.
04:34 PM GMT
22 mins: England 14 Japan 0
T Curry is taken out off the ball and England have the penalty near the Japan 10-metre line on the left-hand side. They go to the corner and it is a great kick from Smith. His kicks to touch last week against South Africa were not great but that was superb. Five-metre lineout to come….
04:28 PM GMT
17 mins: England 14 Japan 0
England have another penalty advantage and they keep the attack going. After a bruising, powerful carry from Lawrence, England ship it wide to the right to Freeman, who kicks ahead and it rolls into touch around 10 metres from the Japan line so it is advantage over.
04:26 PM GMT
TRY! Underhill powers over
England have a penalty advantage but they do not need it. Underhill powers through a few tackles from a few metres out and cannot be stopped. He is slow to get back to his feet and is now receiving medical attention. Smith lands the conversion and England are already in control.
Underhill cannot continue and he is replaced by Cunningham-South.
04:24 PM GMT
12 mins: England 7 Japan 0
England get into the Japan 22 and van Poortvliet makes a break. His offload tries to find Stuart but ends up in the hands of George, who is brought down just a few metres shy of the line. England send it down the blindside but Japan intercept. The visitors were offside though so England have the penalty, which they send into the corner.
04:20 PM GMT
TRY! Earl under the posts
England’s first entry into the Japan 22 with ball in hand results in a try. They already have a penalty advantage from the lineout and ship it into the backs. A neat offload from Smith sends Lawrence through a gap and he passes to his left to find Earl, who cannot be stopped and goes over under the posts. It is the easiest of conversions for Smith and England lead 7-0.
After a clunky opening by England, they draw first blood with a well-worked strike play from a line-out. Henry Slade stepped into first receiver, with Marcus Smith out the back and a great line by Ollie Lawrence puts Ben Earl over. This Japanese defence looks porous when England take the ball to the line. Time to be bold.
04:19 PM GMT
8 mins: England 0 Japan 0
Slade puts in a neat kick in behind from halfway into the Japan 22. The visitors are under pressure but do just enough to clear their lines but England will still have the lineout just outside the visitors’ 22.
04:17 PM GMT
6 mins: England 0 Japan 0
An early concern for England here as van Poortvliet is limping around inside the opening 10 minutes. He already has strapping on his leg going into the game. He has been receiving treatment but he is back up and will at least attempt to continue for the time being.
04:15 PM GMT
4 mins: England 0 Japan 0
Scrum-half Saito drags his kick wide of the left post and Japan spurn their first shot at points.
04:14 PM GMT
3 mins: England 0 Japan 0
First scrum of the match on halfway after England kicked it just dead. It results in a free-kick which Japan take quickly. They earn a penalty near the England 10-metre line as Earl is punished for not rolling away correctly and promptly enough. The visitors point to the posts for a chance to get the first points of the match…
04:10 PM GMT
Kick-off
We are under way at a wet and windy Twickenham.
04:04 PM GMT
Anthem time
Both sides emerge from the tunnel at Twickenham and it is time for the national anthems.
“Kimigayo” followed by “God Save The King”.
Still no sign of Eddie Jones doing any media this week, with Neal Hatley doing the pre-match interview on TNT Sports. But Jones, who missed his press conference on Friday with an ‘illness’, has been out in the middle of the Japan warm-up.
04:03 PM GMT
Steve Borthwick speaking to TNT
“Today we want to put in an 80-minute performance for our supporters. There have been big positives over the last few weeks and the identity is building but ultimately we have not finished games off and today we want the complete performance.
“You have to consider all the things you are doing well. The team are getting into good positions to win games but then it is about finishing them off. We are trying to play with ball speed but we want to couple that with a ruthless edge.
“You see today we have another new cap into the fold [Asher Opoku-Fordjour], a couple of changes in the team and a back-row with speed and athleticism.
“I am sure Japan will be a really well-coached team. Each time we have played Japan in the last few years, we have seen a lot of kicking and attacking down our short side.”
03:59 PM GMT
All you need to know about Japan
After a 64-19 thrashing at the hands of New Zealand, Japan began their autumn schedule with another heavy loss to France, going down 52-12. They arrested that slide last weekend, though, ousting Uruguay 36-20. Eddie Jones has made five changes to the team that delivered that result, and some are significant ones. Warner Dearns, an exceptionally athletic lock, is ruled out of the England encounter after a red card against Uruguay.
Because of that suspension, Jones has assembled a second-row partnership of Sanaila Waqa and Epineri Uluiviti, who boast a total of 14 caps between them. Nicholas McCurran, predominantly a centre over his short Test career to date, is trusted at fly-half as Takuro Matsunaga shifts to full-back for a second cap.
Among the more familiar names in the line-up are Kazuki Himeno, who is deployed at blindside flanker as Faulua Makisi anchors the base of Japan’s scrum. Dylan Riley at outside centre has proven himself to be a balanced and threatening runner. Tomoki Osada and Jone Naikabula, the starting wings, both featured against England at last year’s World Cup.
Noato Saito, now Antoine Dupont’s understudy at Toulouse, captains the team from scrum-half. He scored on his last visit to Twickenham in 2022, which turned out to be Jones’ last victory as head coach of England.
Japan will field a six-two split on their bench, bolstered by a pair of back-rowers in Tevita Tatfu and Ben Gunter. Shinobu Fujiwara, the replacement scrum-half, produced a feisty and action-packed cameo on his debut when England visited Tokyo at the end of June.
03:57 PM GMT
Weather update
It’s so windy inside Twickenham that this writer’s accreditation pass has just been blown away. RFU, if you’re reading this, please don’t kick me out.
03:55 PM GMT
Reminder of the team news
England starting XV: Furbank; Freeman, Lawrence, Slade, Sleightholme; M Smith, Van Poortvliet; Genge, George (capt), Stuart, Itoje, Martin, T Curry, Underhill, Earl.
Replacements: Cowan-Dickie, Baxter, Opoku-Fordjour, Isiekwe, Cunningham-South, Randall, F Smith, Roebuck.
Japan starting XV: Matsunaga; Osada, Riley, Fifita, Naikabula; McCurran, Saito; Okabe, Lee, Takeuchi, Waqa, Uluiviti, Shimokawa, Himeno, Makisi.
Replacements: Matsuoka, Morikawa, Tamefusa, Akiyama, Tatafu, Gunter, Fujiwara, Kajimura.
03:49 PM GMT
A man under pressure?
03:44 PM GMT
Look who’s back!
03:38 PM GMT
‘Without Borthwick, the Eddie Jones years would have fallen apart’
To determine the sliding-doors moment for both Eddie Jones and Steve Borthwick, you have to go back to the weeks immediately following South Africa’s victory over England in the World Cup final in Paris in 2007.
Jones had been recognised as a key component of the Springboks triumph for his work as technical adviser alongside head coach Jake White. In the aftermath, the Australian found himself back in England, working as a coaching consultant with Saracens. One of his first tasks to assist the Premiership club’s head coach Alan Gaffney was to head up player recruitment.
Gavin Mairs has his say on the importance of Borthwick to Jones.
03:32 PM GMT
All over at Murrayfield
It has just finished and Scotland, in their final game of 2024, have beaten Australia 27-13. You can follow all the reaction to that match with our dedicated live blog.
03:30 PM GMT
In defence of Eddie Jones – he pushed England to a better place
Shortly after Eddie Jones had been appointed as England coach, in the wake of us being knocked out of the 2015 World Cup, I was playing at Twickenham for Gloucester against Harlequins when I blew my knee out badly, damaging my cruciate ligaments. I was going to be out for 10 months.
What I could not believe was how Eddie kept in touch with me throughout that period. That was hugely motivating, him giving me the time of day when I was not going to be available for the best part of the year. He obviously had a plan for me and was incredible during that time.
Former England winger Jonny May played plenty of times under Eddie Jones and he has been giving his views on the Jones England years.
03:21 PM GMT
Meanwhile at Murrayfield
Scotland are cruising to victory against Australia, leading 27-6 with just over five minutes left. You can follow the closing stages from Murrayfield with our dedicated live blog.
03:20 PM GMT
Get your fix
03:18 PM GMT
Reasons Marcus Smith has not locked down the England 10 shirt yet
Our senior rugby writer Charlie Morgan has more on why the Harlequins fly-half is yet to nail down the number 10 jersey.
03:12 PM GMT
Telegraph Rugby Podcast
Go beyond the back pages and join the Telegraph’s rugby experts and big name guests as they tackle the game’s most interesting trends, themes and talking points. Our unrivalled rugby coverage, now available on the move! New episodes out Mondays.
03:08 PM GMT
This weekend’s Autumn Nations fixtures
Friday:
France 37-23 Argentina
Saturday:
Ireland 52-17 Fiji
Wales 12-45 South Africa
Italy 11-29 New Zealand
Today:
Scotland 17-6 Australia (62’)
England vs Japan 4.10pm
03:06 PM GMT
‘England’s players want Steve Borthwick to stay? Prove it’
What sort of England team will turn up against Japan? Steve Borthwick could not have been more emphatic in his selection, at least. In making just two changes to the side to face Eddie Jones’s team, with the return of senior players George Furbank and Tom Curry to the starting XV, the England head coach has given a ringing endorsement of the squad who somehow find themselves searching for a first win in six Tests.
This was never going to be an autumn of experimentation for Borthwick. The England head coach had already made his transitional moves at the start of the year, post-World Cup. When Asher Opoku-Fordjour makes his eagerly awaited debut from the bench, the 20-year-old Sale Sharks prop will be the ninth debutant of the year under Borthwick. With a promising showing he is expected to be in strong contention for a place in the match-day squad for the Six Nations.
For more from our chief rugby union correspondent Gavin Mairs, click here.
03:01 PM GMT
‘Eddie Jones is a bully and too many people accepted it’
“Very few players dispute Jones’ coaching ability. The debate is whether the ends justified the means. Danny Care, by way of his autobiography, was the first senior English player to articulate what multiple sources had claimed for years: that Jones fostered a toxic environment in which individuals were routinely humiliated in public. “It was like living in a dictatorship,” Care writes. “Remember what it felt like when someone was being bullied at school and you were just glad it wasn’t you? That was the vibe.”
Our deputy rugby union correspondent Daniel Schofield has the full story ahead of Eddie’s return to Twickenham to face England.
02:57 PM GMT
Hosts at HQ
02:53 PM GMT
Team news
England make two changes to their starting XV from their defeat to South Africa last weekend. Tom Curry returns from concussion in the back-row and George Furbank replaces Freddie Steward at full-back. There is set to be a debut off the bench for 20-year-old Sale prop Asher Opoku-Fordjour whilst Fin Smith replaces George Ford on the bench.
England starting XV: Furbank; Freeman, Lawrence, Slade, Sleightholme; M Smith, Van Poortvliet; Genge, George (capt), Stuart, Itoje, Martin, T Curry, Underhill, Earl.
Replacements: Cowan-Dickie, Baxter, Opoku-Fordjour, Isiekwe, Cunningham-South, Randall, F Smith, Roebuck.
Japan starting XV: Matsunaga; Osada, Riley, Fifita, Naikabula; McCurran, Saito; Okabe, Harada, Takeuchi, Waqa, Uluiviti, Shimokawa, Himeno, Makisi.
Replacements: Lee, Morikawa, Tamefusa, Akiyama, Tatafu, Gunter, Fujiwara, Kajimura.
02:42 PM GMT
England desperate for a win
Eddie Jones is back at Twickenham! His Japan side take on an England team in desperate need of a victory. Steve Borthwick’s men are looking to end a fairly dismal Autumn Nations Series campaign on a high at Twickenham this afternoon. They have lost three straight games this month, which makes it five consecutive defeats dating back to the summer, and are hoping to end that losing streak today. Their Autumn campaign began with a narrow defeat to New Zealand before losing at the death to Australia. They then fell to back-to-back world champions South Africa last weekend and England are in desperate need of a good win today.
It is going to be a special day for Sale prop Asher Opoku-Fordjour as the 20-year-old is set to make his debut off the bench today. England head coach Borthwick is very excited to see Opoku-Fordjour, who can operate on both sides of the scrum, make his England debut today.
“I think the value of having a prop, with the ability to switch sides… you look at some other nations, and you look at the likes of Thomas du Toit, his ability to play on both sides of the scrum,” Borthwick said.
“That’s enormously valuable, especially when you start picking squads for the major tournament. You end up having different assets and different amounts of flexibility. I’m delighted that he [Opoku-Fordjour] played for the A team last week, having trained with us for several days – and he was able to play at loosehead there.
“He’s been playing at tight-head for Sale, and it’s clear most of the senior rugby has been played at tighthead, and he’s done really well. When I speak to Joe Marler and Dan Cole, and talk about some of the best props around, they give me a recommendation of Asher.
“They say, this guy’s a really good scrummager. You start going, ‘right, there’s something in this player’. He’s a guy who comes with great recommendations from experienced Test players.”
Today marks Jones’ first game against England at Twickenham since his sacking as the England head coach in late 2022. He did coach the Barbarians against Fiji on this ground earlier this year. Since being sacked by England, he was in charge of Australia as they were dumped out of the World Cup in the group stages and then left that job to take over as Japan’s head coach.
It has not been a particularly successful few months for Japan. After losing to Fiji in the Pacific Nations Cup final back in September, they were heavily beaten at home by New Zealand before falling to another big defeat at the hands of France. They did beat Uruguay 36-20 eight days ago.
The omens are on England’s side today; they have won all 10 previous meetings with Japan, including a 52-17 win in Tokyo back in June. They also met at the World Cup last year, with England running out 34-12 winners during the group stages.
Kick-off is at 4.10pm.
