Jeremy Guscott has paid the price for a black mark against the All Blacks when he was dumped from England's World Cup crusade yesterday. The veteran centre, whose missed tackle led directly to New Zealand's first try in England's defeat last Saturday, was dropped for Friday's win-or-bust showdown with Tonga at Twickenham as coach Clive Woodward made six changes to his starting line-up.
Guscott doesn't even get a place on the bench as Woodward bids to give England fresh momentum after a defeat against New Zealand which if it had meant World Cup exit Woodward insists he "would never have spoken to his players again."
At 34 and after winning 64 caps Guscott's international future must now be in doubt as Will Greenwood steps back in. Northampton's Paul Grayson replaces 20-year-old fly-half Jonny Wilkinson who missed three vital kicks in the first-half against the All Blacks.
And there is a first cap for 22-year-old Wasps flanker Joe Worsley, who comes in for Neil Back, who is nursing a head wound. Phil Greening, Graham Rowntree and Garath Archer are also called upon to beef up a pack in need of a rest after the exertions of the last fortnight.
But Woodward insists he has picked the strongest team available from a squad which has a collective anger after watching the first 20 minutes of the clash with New Zealand on video.
"We were angry at ourselves rather than disappointed," said Woodward. "I have got an angry group of players because they didn't play as well as they could. They didn't play smart.
"Maybe it was the pressure of the occasion. We froze a bit. But it was a massive learning curve. Now we're in a corner. This is the knockout stage and we have got to win."
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