Expert
England
19
80
New Zealand
7
G. Ford | 68 | |||
G. Ford | 62 | |||
57 | R. Mo'unga | |||
56 | A. Savea | |||
G. Ford | 49 | |||
G. Ford | 39 | |||
O. Farrell | 2 | |||
M. Tuilagi | 1 |
1 | Tries | 1 | ||
1 | Conversions | 1 | ||
4 | Penalty Goals | 0 | ||
0 | Field Goals | 0 |
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New Zealand’s dream of three consecutive Rugby World Cup victories has come to a dramatic end, losing to England 7-19 in the semi-finals.
Final score
England 19
All Blacks 7
The All Blacks will go head to head with England with a place in the World Cup Final at stake. There are many who are calling this the unofficial final and it promises to be a fantastic clash. Join The Roar for live scores and a blog of what promises to be a thrilling match starting from 7pm AEDT on Saturday.
We started with 20 just a few weeks ago and now we’re left with four. Four teams who are just 160 minutes away from maybe, just maybe getting to lift the Webb Ellis trophy. It’s very likely that the eventual winner will come from this match and when you look through the teams you can see why.
Steve Hansen has made a tactical change in the back row that could be a masterstroke. Scott Barrett has come off the bench to swap with Sam Cane.
It’s not that Cane has done anything wrong. But with the traditional lock Barrett at flanker, Hansen has given his team four line out jumpers – Whitelock, Barrett, Read and Retallick.
This compares to England two options of Maro Itoje and Courtney Lawes. With both sides likely to use a kicking game to build pressure and gain territory, a fearsome line out full of options is going to help the All Blacks a lot.
For England the only change is George Ford returning to the starting fly half position as Owen Farrell and Manu Tuilagi move out one and Henry Slade will come off the bench.
Eddie Jones backs Ford to bring a good kicking game and it’s going to have to be very good when you consider the Kiwi back three.
There are great battles to watch all over the field but keep a close eye on the back rows.
Last week the English played Australia off the park and the young guns of Sam Underhill and Tom Curry dominated the more experienced Michael Hooper and David Pocock.
If they can do the same to Aardie Savea and Barrett then that’s a key win for England.
Prediction
England are a definite threat to the Kiwis’ hopes of a hat-trick of World Cup titles. They are growing in confidence and form and have the master Eddie Jones guiding them well.
However in all the key areas the All Blacks just look that little bit better and more experienced.
New Zealand to win by 7 points.
Join The Roar for live scores and a blog of what promises to be a beauty of a match starting from 7pm AEDT on Saturday.
Where: International Stadium Yokohama, Yokohama City
Date: Saturday October 28
Kick-off: 7pm AEDT
TV: Foxsports
Betting: New Zealand $1.36, England $3.10
All Blacks
15 Beauden Barrett
14 Sevu Reece
13 Jack Goodhue
12 Anton Lienert-Brown
11 George Bridge
10 Richie Mo’unga
9 Aaron Smith
8 Kieran Read (c)
7 Ardie Savea
6 Scott Barrett
5 Sam Whitelock
4 Brodie Retallick
3 Nepo Laulala
2 Codie Taylor
1 Joe Moody
Replacements
16 Dane Coles
17 Ofa Tu’ungafasi
18 Angus Ta’avao
19 Patrick Tuipulotu
20 Sam Cane
21 TJ Perenara
22 Sonny Bill Williams
23 Jordie Barrett
England
15 Elliot Daly
14 Anthony Watson
13 Manu Tuilagi
12 Owen Farrell (c)
11 Jonny May
10 George Ford
9 Ben Youngs
8 Billy Vunipola
7 Sam Underhill
6 Tom Curry
5 Courtney Lawes
4 Maro Itoje
3 Kyle Sinckler
2 Jamie George
1 Mako Vunipola
Replacements
16 Luke Cowan-Dickie
17 Joe Marler
18 Dan Cole
19 George Kruis
20 Mark Wilson
21 Willi Heinz
22 Henry Slade
23 Jonathan Joseph
Referee: Nigel Owens
Assistant referees: Romain Poite, Pascal Gauzere
TMO: Marius Jonker
2019 World Cup Form
New Zealand WWWW
England WWWW
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