Steve Borthwick insists England must be ready to go to a dark place of “pain and suffering” as he prepares to unleash his British and Irish Lions-stacked bomb squad on New Zealand.
George Ford will direct operations against the All Blacks at Allianz Stadium on Saturday amid a prediction from Borthwick that the veteran fly-half will eventually become England head coach.
On the bench Borthwick has strengthened his reputation as a bold selector by picking six Lions including a heavyweight front row of Luke Cowan-Dickie, Ellis Genge and Will Stuart, as well as back-row warrior Tom Curry.
Ready to go 🌹
— England Rugby (@EnglandRugby) November 11, 2025
Steve Borthwick has named his 23-player squad for our next clash with the All Blacks at @allianz_stad.@O2 | #WearTheRose
England’s bomb squad has turned the tide against Australia and Fiji so far this autumn, with the sight of five forwards being introduced en masse around the 50-minute mark generating excitement around an expectant Twickenham.
Not using the likes of Genge and Curry from the start against New Zealand is a brave call, but it is part of a strategy to ensure there are enough big hitters on the field in the final quarter to help close out what is expected to be another desperately tight battle between the rivals.
As part of the quest to topple the All Blacks for the first time since the 2019 World Cup semi-finals, Borthwick has also outlined the physical challenge awaiting his players.
“There’s no doubt that playing against New Zealand, the team is going to have to dig very, very deep,” the head coach said.
“This team is going to have to go into a place where there is pain and suffering because there will be this need to keep running.
“There’s a need for this to be the most selfless team performance England have produced, because that’s how good New Zealand are.
“The players are going to have to give absolutely everything of themselves. More and more now, you are seeing a team that plays so much with their hearts.”
Ford’s priority will be playing with his head, however, as he pulls the strings in preference to Fin Smith, who is jettisoned from the 23 altogether with Marcus Smith supplying fly-half cover from the bench.
The 32-year-old will win his 104th cap on Saturday and is in the form of his life as he closes in on a fourth World Cup, his rugby intelligence providing England with a de facto player-coach.
“George is a very calm leader, but he also has the ability to put the team on to the front foot,” Borthwick said.
“He’s a phenomenal player and many years from now he’s going to be a brilliant coach.
“His character and understanding of the game means I wouldn’t be in any way surprised if he was England head coach at some point in the future. I think he will be, if that’s where he chooses to go.”
Wing Tommy Freeman has been ruled out of the rest of the autumn because of a hamstring strain but lock Ollie Chessum could recover from a foot injury in time to face Argentina on Saturday week.
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