England head coach Steve Borthwick has made five changes to the starting XV for Saturday's Nations Championship opener against South Africa at Ellis Park, with George Martin and Jack van Poortvliet handed key roles.
Martin replaces Itoje in second row
Martin, who recently joined Saracens from Leicester, fills the void left by captain Maro Itoje. Van Poortvliet, his former Leicester teammate, starts at scrum-half ahead of Alex Mitchell and Ben Spencer. The changes follow a narrow 48-46 loss to France in the Six Nations finale.
Back-row selection sparks debate
Despite calls for Northampton's Henry Pollock to start, Borthwick has opted for the experience of Tom Curry and Ben Earl in the back-row, with Pollock and Guy Pepper on the bench. Ollie Chessum retains the No 6 jersey to counter South Africa's physicality and lineout strength.
George Furbank returns at fullback for his first start since November 2024, replacing Elliot Daly. Manny Feyi-Waboso, who missed the Six Nations through injury, starts on the wing in place of Tom Roebuck. Tom Curry is recalled at flanker, replacing Guy Pepper.
Borthwick's assessment
“Playing South Africa at Ellis Park is one of the great Tests in world rugby and an opportunity we’re excited to embrace,” Borthwick said. “We’ve prepared well since we arrived here last week and I sense a real excitement within the squad to get our Nations Championship campaign under way.”
England have lost their last four Tests and last won at Ellis Park in 1972. After Saturday's match, they will face Fiji at Everton's Hill Dickinson Stadium before travelling to Argentina on 18 July.
England team to face South Africa: Furbank (Harlequins); Feyi-Waboso (Exeter); Freeman (Northampton), Atkinson (Gloucester), Murley (Harlequins); F Smith (Northampton), Van Poortvliet (Leicester); Genge (Bristol Bears), George (Saracens, capt), Heyes (Leicester), Coles (Northampton), Martin (Saracens), Chessum (Leicester), T Curry (Sale), Earl (Saracens). Replacements: Cowan-Dickie (Sale), Obano (Bath), Opoku-Fordjour (Sale), Ewels (Bath), Pepper (Bath), Pollock (Northampton), Mitchell (Northampton), Smith (Harlequins).
