England pack is primed for Boks battle

RICHARD Cockerill insists that England must stay in the fight as the pack prime themselves for a heavyweight collision with South Africa at Twickenham this evening (KO 5.30pm).

The rematch of the 2019 World Cup final concludes a disappointing year for Eddie Jones’ men, who have lost five of their 11 games.

The rivals clashed at the same venue in 2021 when England edged a thrilling 27-26 victory, and Cockerill has braced his team for another full-frontal assault.

“The Springboks play in a very different way to most other teams,” forwards coach Cockerill said. “They don’t vary much. You know what’s coming, they’re coming through the front door and you must match that.

“We managed it last year in the same fixture, but only just, and we have to make sure that whatever happens, when we have periods when we’re on top or are under pressure, we have to survive, stay in the game and make sure we convert our pressure into points.

“Against New Zealand, although for the first 70 minutes we were under huge pressure in parts, we hung on and we stayed in it.

“We have to be very physical and match whatever the Springboks bring and wherever possible try and get dominance.”

England are aiming to go toe to toe with the renowned ‘Bomb Squad’, the Springboks’ front row replacements who left a major dent on opponents at the World Cup three years ago.

Mako Vunipola, Jamie George and Kyle Sinckler start to reprise the rolls they performed in Yokohama in 2019 with Ellis Genge, Luke Cowan-Dickie and Will Stuart scheduled to arrive as thirdquarter reinforcements.

England have been under pressure this autumn from the moment they lost the opener against Argentina but a victory over South Africa would rescue the campaign from failure.