England primed to deliver against Fiji

England v Fiji

Twickenham, 8.0pm

TV3, ITV

“England expects that every man will do his duty,” was a signal sent by instruction from the then vice-admiral Horatio Nelson to the rest of the English fleet as a motivational gee-up ahead of the battle of Trafalgar, a sentiment that has been appropriated by the English rugby team.

The language may be less overt but the gist of the message coming from the England camp is that the players are in the shape of their lives and that they are primed for whatever the 2015 Rugby World Cup may thrust in their direction: as tournament hosts they are energised by rather than skittish about the upcoming challenge.

Physical wellbeing

The England team and management are “ready.” Forwards’ coach Graham Rowntree said so; secondrow Geoff Parling repeated the word, and flanker Tom Wood elaborated on the feeling of mental and physical wellbeing.

Sports psychologist Bill Beswick has worked with the England rugby team and is a confidant of head coach Stuart Lancaster. Psychiatrist Dr Steve Peters’s list of other clients includes gold medal Olympians Victoria Pendleton and Chris Hoy, snooker player Ronnie O’Sullivan and the English soccer team: their influence is tangible, everyone is on message, upbeat, positive and determined.

It’s just as well because there is no wriggle room for the hosts to fluff their lines on the opening night of the tournament. Pool A is going to be a hellish experience for one of England, Australia and Wales with only two to qualify. Bonus points will hold to key to qualification.

England, the 66/1-on favourites to beat Pacific Nations champions Fiji, have won their last seven matches at Twickenham and enter the tournament on the back of an impressive victory over Ireland that was comprehensive in many areas if not on the scoreboard.

They deserve to be bullish and there was just a hint when Rowntree briefly strayed from the usual pre-match niceties. Having praised the Fijians as outstanding athletes and rugby players, whose offloading and lines of running make them gloriously unpredictable and difficult to corral, he asserted: “We’re ready for them. Our guys are a handful. They have got to stop us on our home turf.”

Quite apart from the vociferous backing of the lion’s share of the crowd, the projected weather forecast is for heavy, squally showers with thunder as an accompaniment.

While Lancaster’s England would prefer a firm sod and a dry ball, they are immeasurably better equipped if the conditions dictate an arm wrestle round the set piece and breakdown.

The side that beat Ireland has been retained en bloc, young outhalf George Ford charged with bringing nuance and variety to attacking patterns off front-foot ball, and Brad Barritt, to marshal the defence in conjunction with the backrow of Tom Wood, Chris Robshaw and Ben Morgan.

England possess two in-form wings in Jonny May and Anthony Watson, the gliding elegance of Jonathan Joseph at outside centre and the permanently scowling but gifted Mike Brown at fullback – a scalpel sharp edge to complement the muscularity of the pack.

If Fiji is to countenance an upset then they are going to have to discover a proficiency and appetite for set-piece graft and discipline in defence. Their attacking prowess is unquestioned but the offloads must stick. Thrown with purpose and precision rather than desperation.

Lavishly gifted

Crusaders’ six foot four inch (193cm) wing, Nemani Nadolo, scrumhalf Nico Matawalu, now at Bath, and the lavishly gifted secondrow Leone Nakarawa, who did so much to help the Glasgow Warriors to the Guinness Pro12 title, Leicester Tigers wing-cum-centre Veriki Goneva and the outstanding Waisea Nayacalevu, a six foot five inch wing who averages more than a try every two games with French Top 14 champions, Stade Francais, are capable of shredding defences.

An unstructured game will suit Fiji but their hosts will be loathe to accommodate those wishes. England can’t afford to step out of line in defence, literally. Communication, speed and aggression will be vital components if the home side is to nullify their opponents’ enterprise. They will look to stifle Fiji’s supply of possession, targeting scrum and lineout, knowing that the visitors won’t survive on a subsistence of scraps.

For now the weight of expectation sits easily on the broad shoulders of a confident, well-prepared England team – they took the away changing room for the Ireland match because that is where they will be for this game in their changed strip of red jerseys – intent on delivering on their pre-match promise.

ENGLAND: M Brown (Harlequins); A Watson (Bath), J Joseph (Bath), B Barritt (Saracens), J May (Gloucester); G Ford (Bath); B Youngs (Leicester Tigers); J Marler (Harlequins), T Youngs (Leicester Tigers), D Cole (Leicester Tigers); G Parling (Exeter Chiefs), C Lawes (Northampton Saints); T Wood (Northampton Saints), C Robshaw (capt, Harlequins), B Morgan (Gloucester). Replacements: R Webber (Bath), M Vunipola (Saracens), K Brookes (Northampton Saints), J Launchbury (Wasps), B Vunipola (Saracens), R Wigglesworth (Saracens), O Farrell (Saracens), S Burgess (Bath).

FIJI: M Talebula (Bordeaux-Begles); W Nayacalevu (Stade Francais), V Goneva (Leicester Tigers), G Lovobalavu (Bayonne), N Nadolo (Crusaders); B Volavola (Waratahs), N Matawalu (Bath); C Ma'afu (Nottingham), S Koto (Narbonne), M Saulo (Farul Constanta); A Ratuniyarawa (Agen), L Nakarawa (Glasgow Warriors); D Waqaniburotu (Brive), A Qera (capt, Toulouse), S Matadigo (Lyon). Replacements: T Talemaitoga (Sade Francais), P Ravai ((Nadroga), I Colati (USON Rugby), T Cavubati (Worcester Warriors), P Yato (Clermont Auvergne), N Kenatale (Steaua Buceresti), J Matavesi (Ospreys), A Tikoirotuma (London Irish).

Referee: Jaco Peyper (South Africa)