England turn to Te’o as Jones shakes up backs

Powerhouse centre will start against Italy Care and Farrell to form new half-back pairing

England are to hand a first international start to powerhouse centre Ben Te’o against Italy on Sunday as Eddie Jones fields a revamped backline that will include a recall for scrum-half Danny Care.

It is understood that Te’o, who has delivered two hugely-impressive cameos from the bench in the victories over France and Wales – including the match-winning try against Les Bleus at Twickenham – will start in the midfield on Sunday.

Owen Farrell will win his 50th cap, but not as captain, as Jones is poised to retain Dylan Hartley in his side despite calls for Saracens hooker Jamie George to start after making impressive impacts from the bench.

Elliot Daly, who scored England’s dramatic late winner in Cardiff, will also be retained.

Care has made just four starts over the last two years – his last for England’s victory over Les Blues in Paris last season – and his return in place of Ben Youngs signals Jones’s intent to experiment with his side’s game plan against the struggling Italians.

Interestingly, Jones, who names his side today, will only make one change up front, with James Haskell coming into the back row in place of Jack Clifford. Haskell’s return to full fitness strengthens the pack, with Mako Vunipola expected to feature from the bench following his return to the squad after nine weeks on the sidelines with a knee injury.

It is the selection of Te’o, however, that is the most eye-catching. The Auckland-born 30-year-old, who has played rugby league for Samoa, has taken to the international demands of the 15-a-side code much quicker that his former South Sydney Rabbitohs team-mate Sam Burgess.

His powerful, direct running and offloading ability have been key features of England’s strong finishes, but his ability to have a similar impact from the start of a Test match will be one of the focal points of the contest.

Te’o will also pose a more direct threat to the greater footballing partnership of Farrell and Jonathan Joseph, who has been dropped from the squad.

Full-back Mike Brown, who along with right wing Jack Nowell are the only two backs to retain their places, has been impressed by Teo’s impact.

“He’s progressed really well since being in this environment,” said Brown. “He’s got that direct game but he also has the ball-handling skills, he’s a good offloader, his defence is brilliant and he’s been really good coming off the bench as a finisher these last couple of weeks. He really brings this energy, great running skills, getting us over the gain line and also his defence has been top drawer as well.”

Asked if he saw any similarities between Te’o and Burgess, who returned to rugby league after the disastrous World Cup campaign in 2015, Brown said: “Sam wasn’t here long enough was he? I guess they are similar in the way that they have the offloading skills, the skills they’ve brought over from rugby league. I think Te’o grew up playing rugby union first, so he had that base, whereas Sam didn’t. He was having to start from zero, so Te’o is a bit more progressed and he’s progressing even more in this environment, he’s showed that coming off the bench and changing games.”

Jones said after the victory over Wales that he wanted to “take Italy to the cleaners”. Paul Gustard, the England defence coach, said the objective was to dominate Italy in every aspect of play.

England have drawn on an Italian influence this week during their preparations, with the visit of Chelsea manager Antonio Conte to Pennyhill Park on Wednesday. Conte was impressed.

“I learnt today about how detailed the preparation is in rugby through video analysis as well as the physical element to the sport,” Conte said. “We spoke about our experience and it was very interesting to speak to him. Eddie is a winner and he is transferring that mentality on to the team.

“For me it was very interesting to observe another sport and the differences between the two, such as the physical aspect to their training, as well as speak with Eddie Jones about the analysis side to the game. It is important for me to compare my work and experience.”