Lancaster confirms worst kept secret with team announcement
LONDON: Stuart Lancaster confirmed the worst-kept secret of the Rugby World Cup on Thursday when he named Owen Farrell and Sam Burgess in England’s starting team to face Wales at Twickenham on Saturday.
Farrell takes over flyhalf duties from the dropped George Ford, who starts on the bench, while Burgess comes in for the injured Jonathan Joseph and will start at inside centre.
The ever-reliable Brad Barritt moves to the 13 position.
Billy Vunipola is rewarded for an impressive display off the bench in last Friday’s opening win against Fiji by being given the starting position at number eight.
Ben Morgan is injured, so James Haskell provides back row cover from the bench.
Alex Goode is also named among the replacements to cover the back three.
The change at flyhalf and the 14th different centre partnership of Lancaster’s near-four year tenure have been a huge talking point for two days since being leaked to the media.
Lancaster clearly wants to combat the physical threat of Wales, particularly hard-running centre Jamie Roberts, and his collisions with Burgess will shake Twickenham to its foundations.
The selection continues the remarkable ascent of Burgess, who initially struggled to get to grips with the new code after switching from rugby league at the start of the year.
He made his debut in an August warmup against France, but his direct running and deft off-loading during an impressive cameo against Fiji showed that he has made great strides since being in camp with England.
The England coaches also respect his bigmatch temperament, an attribute that will be key in what is likely to be an enormously tense affair on Saturday. Farrell was England’s first-choice flyhalf until injury during the Six Nations opened the door for Ford and he too looked good off the bench against Fiji.
Known for his ice-cool nerve, Farrell also offers a little more physicality than Ford — himself an aggressive tackler — while both men are world-class goalkickers. — Reuters