England captain Owen Farrell said on Thursday he was on the same page as fly-half George Ford after they were named to start this weekend’s Rugby World Cup game against Samoa.
Farrell moves from fly-half in 14 changes from the win over Chile on September 23 with Ford wearing the No. 10 for Saturday’s game in Lille.
It will be the first time the childhood friends have started a Test together since March 2021.
“I’m obviously pretty close to George anyway. We speak about everything rugby-wise regardless of what the team is,” Farrell told reporters.
“We’re on the same page. We’ve kicked on since we’ve last played together, so hopefully we can show that on the weekend,” the 32-year-old added.
Farrell is just two points away from passing Jonny Wilkinson’s England points record of 1,179.
“I’ve not given it too much thought,” Farrell said.
“It’s not something you want to think about too much before it’s done.
“My sole concentration is on the game at the weekend and preparing for what’s a massive Test against Samoa.
“It’s been an honour to have the chance to play for England as much as I have and to be in the vicinity of the record, to play with this group of players and all the players I’ve been able to,” he added.
Willis out
England will have to do without flanker Jack Willis, who has been ruled out of the remainder of the tournament with a neck issue.
“He suffered an injury in the Test match against Chile,” head coach Steve Borthwick said.
“Jack has left the squad and his replacement will be announced in due course.
“The injury will be a few weeks but the timescales we’re operating means he will be replaced in the 23,” he added
There is no place in the matchday squad for winger Henry Arundell, who scored five tries against Chile.
Joe Marchand moves from midfield to the wing with Jonny May in the No. 11 shirt.
“Henry’s a wonderful player. He played tremendously well against Chile,” Borthwick said.
“It’s another sign of what great talent we have. I have this great group of players who all train to ensure to get the team right for this weekend,” he added.
Borthwick’s side have already reached the quarter-finals having beaten Chile, Argentina and Japan.
Samoa can still qualify for the knock-out stage but need to score four tries or win by a healthy margin and hope Argentina and Japan draw when they meet on Sunday.
Former England captain Borthwick refused to look further ahead than the game at Stade-Pierre Mauroy, with a quarter-final against Fiji or Wales on the horizon on the weekend of October 14-15.
“This press conference is for Samoa on Saturday,” Borthwick said.
“We’re playing against a strong Samoa Saturday and have picked a team to get a result we want against Samoa on Saturday,” he added.
England (15-1)
Freddie Steward; Joe Marchant, Manu Tuilagi, Owen Farrell (capt), Jonny May; George Ford, Alex Mitchell; Ben Earl, Tom Curry, Courtney Lawes; Ollie Chessum, Maro Itoje; Dan Cole, Jamie George, Ellis Genge
Replacements: Theo Dan, Joe Marler, Kyle Sinckler, George Martin, Billy Vunipola, Danny Care, Marcus Smith, Ollie Lawrence
AFP
