England vulnerable as Australia plot Twickenham heist

Autumn Nations Series: England v Australia

Venue: Allianz Stadium, Twickenham Date: Saturday, 9 November Kick-off: 15:10 GMT

Coverage: Listen to unrecorded commentary connected BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra and BBC Sounds, travel unrecorded substance commentary connected the BBC Sport website and app.

The brushed centre of a confederate hemisphere sandwich. That is however Saturday’s brushwood with Australia appeared erstwhile England revealed their 2024 autumn fixtures.

Between ever-competitive New Zealand and satellite champions South Africa, England play an Australia squad they person beaten successful 10 of their erstwhile 11 meetings - a tally stretching backmost to 2016.

More caller signifier doesn't situation the cognition either.

Australia person mislaid 5 of their past six matches. They finished bottommost of the Rugby Championship. Last year's Rugby World Cup run ended successful a miserable pool-stage exit. They are ranked ninth successful the world, beneath Italy and a smidge supra Fiji.

The existent harvest of Wallabies are surely abbreviated of bounce. They can, however, inactive box. Canny coaches, blockbuster endowment and a cherished underdog presumption springiness the tourists a puncher's accidental astatine Allianz Stadium, Twickenham connected Saturday.

And, fixed their wobbly form, England are surely not invulnerable to an upset.

Steve Borthwick's broadside themselves person lone 1 triumph - a comfy cruise past Japan - from their past 5 fixtures. Several times successful that run, they person been locked connected for the winners' enclosure, lone to veer into the rails successful the last quarter.

Their quality to slice faster than a boil lavation is stark.

Among the apical 10 teams successful the satellite this year, nary person scored much points than the 77 England person chalked up betwixt 40 minutes and 60 minutes successful matches. But, contrastingly, nary person scored less than the 35 they person managed from the hr people to full-time.

England person a points quality of 47 from 40-60 minutes successful matches this year. They are minus 23 from the last quarter.

The mode that an eight-point pb evaporated precocious connected against All Blacks past play swung the spotlight onto England’s bench.

Replacement fly-half George Ford missed 2 perchance match-winning shots. Scrum-half Harry Randall struggled to link with his team-mates. The rejigged forwards went into retreat.

Borthwick has made changes successful the anticipation his finishers tin lucifer up to the occupation description.

All-brawn Luke Cowan-Dickie comes into the squad successful spot of all-court Theo Dan. The six-two divided connected the seat betwixt forwards and backs has been abandoned successful favour of a much accepted five-three split, meaning the battalion won't beryllium shuffled arsenic dramatically successful the closing stages.

The lone alteration to the starting XV is simply a positional power successful midfield, with Ollie Lawrence swapping to extracurricular centre and Henry Slade coming wrong to 12.

The mentation is that it should alteration Lawrence - restricted to 2 carries against New Zealand - to get the shot successful much space.

However, the revival of a dual playmaker signifier that worked fitfully nether Eddie Jones has imaginable weaknesses.

Slade volition person to pb the backline defence from a antithetic perspective, clocking dangers some wrong and outside. Just backmost from enarthrosis surgery, helium is besides placed successful the high-traffic lane wherever Lawrence made 27 tackles against the All Blacks. Len Ikitau - Australia's hard-running wrong centre - is definite to trial Slade early.

On the different broadside of the ball, England surely request thing to spark their attack.

Against New Zealand, they were dense connected perspiration, but airy connected inspiration.

England's solitary effort came from a astute Marcus Smith intercept of a ponderous pass, but they seldom looked arsenic if they could prime a mode though the defence via their ain wit.

Among the world’s apical 10 nations, lone Wales person been little businesslike successful turning entries into the 22 into points this year.

England person immoderate good attacking talents. But, whether it is the strategy oregon individuals wrong it, imaginable has not been cashed successful arsenic points.

If it had, their past 4 defeats - each by a converted people oregon little - could person been precise different.

England's repeated nonaccomplishment to get implicit the skyline and retired of show volition springiness 5-1 outsiders Australia hope.

The instant installation of Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii successful the backline volition adhd to it, adjacent if the value of anticipation volition surely beryllium dense connected the 21-year-old.

An age-grade phenomenon, Suaalii has been brought backmost to national from rugby league successful a connection determination aimed astatine galvanising a squad and reinvigorating a sport.

For each the dollar signs and headlines though, his archetypal crippled of national since his schoolhouse days volition travel astatine Test level, with unfamiliar team-mates alongside him and 80,000 fans successful beforehand of him.

Head manager Joe Schmidt admitted picking Suaalii is simply a gamble, and that it was 1 that mightiness not wage disconnected immediately.

"If not now, when?" said the New Zealander.

"I deliberation it makes immoderate consciousness for him to play. It's improbable it'll spell perfectly, but it volition beryllium a benchmark that helium tin physique from."

Angus Bell and Taniela Tupou are formidable foundations and the props volition relish the accidental to get astatine England astatine the set-piece. The backmost enactment of Harry Wilson, Rob Valetini and Fraser McReight person been prima performers. Twenty-year-old helping Max Jorgensen, who starts connected the bench, was astir arsenic highly hyped arsenic Suaalii coming up done school.

Perhaps astir importantly, Schmidt, who sculpted Ireland's intricate patterns betwixt 2013 and 2019, is successful the stands. His dependable manus is adjacent much captious than Suaalii's stardust successful Australia's revival.

So acold nether him betterment has been incremental. Victory implicit England would beryllium a melodramatic break-out success. It would besides nonstop Steve Borthwick's men plunging successful the other absorption earlier the sojourn of the Springboks.

For each Australia's points of promise, it is simply a crippled England should win. But, arsenic the Twickenham regulars tin attest, determination person been plentifulness of those.

And, erstwhile the last whistle had blown, markedly less victories.