Lewis Ludlam’s understated influence has won the approval of Steve Borthwick after England’s unsung hero was picked ahead of Billy Vunipola at number eight for Sunday’s World Cup clash with Japan.
Vunipola has completed his two-match suspension for a dangerous tackle against Ireland last month but the hard-carrying Saracen is limited to a bench role for the Stade de Nice showdown.
Instead, Ludlam has been rewarded for his defensive masterclass as a replacement in the 27-10 win over Argentina on Saturday by filling the hole in the back row created by Tom Curry’s suspension, also for an illegal challenge.
Ben Earl switches from number eight to openside to accommodate the return of Ludlam, who played every minute of this year’s Six Nations and has been one of England’s most consistent performers of recent times.
The versatile Northampton skipper’s elevation above the less mobile Vunipola is a nod to Japan’s high tempo tactics, which assistant coach Kevin Sinfield has compared to Barcelona’s tiki-taka style of football.
Borthwick believes the quality of Ludlam’s performances deserve greater recognition.
“We’ve been really impressed by Lewis in training and I’ve been really impressed with his impact from the bench,” England’s head coach said.
“With the nature of this game and the challenge Japan pose, I thought Lewis was the right person to start. He carries, he runs hard and covers a lot of ground in defence, which I don’t think people often see.
“What he does often goes under the radar. He’s that type of player and we value that here. Lewis is a great energy giver. He is a great driver of this squad and very generous in helping other team-mates improve. You always need those type of players in your team.
“He has been a key leader of his club side for many seasons and I have seen that growth in him as a leader.”
Two further changes in personnel have been made in the front row where Kyle Sinckler and Joe Marler displace Dan Cole and Ellis Genge as starting props.
Sinckler has recovered from the pectoral injury that limited his game time during the warm-up Tests and prevented him from facing the Pumas in the Pool D opener in Marseille.
The 30-year-old tighthead will be making his first World Cup appearance since being knocked out in the final against South Africa four years ago.
“It’s great to see Kyle Sinckler back in the team. He probably could have played against Argentina but he’s now absolutely 100 per cent this week,” Borthwick said.
“I saw a great advancement in the consistency of his game in the Six Nations. What I see of him now is physically a guy who is in great shape.
“He’s exceptionally strong and he’s moving really well. I sense the hunger in him and a desire in him to want to do exceptionally well for England in this World Cup.”
Borthwick has retained the same backline that featured against Argentina with George Ford given another opportunity to argue his case for being viewed as first choice fly-half.
Owen Farrell completes his four-match ban – once again for a dangerous tackle – versus Japan and becomes available for the last two group matches against Chile and Samoa, forcing Borthwick to make a difficult call at 10.
England will march on to a place in the quarter-finals if they topple Japan, who are not the dynamic force that captured hearts and minds at the last World Cup when they reached the knockout phase for the first time.
Having risen to tier-one status, they have now slipped to 14th in the global rankings but at least opened the tournament with a thumping 42-12 victory over Chile.
Gatland 'still the best coach in the world', says Wales assistant Howley
Wales assistant Rob Howley described Warren Gatland as the "world's best coach" and insists the under-fire boss is going nowhere.
Wales have lost each of their last 11 Test matches, their longest ever run in men’s rugby, overtaking a 10-game stretch between November 2002 and August 2003.
Their most recent defeat came by 32 points (20-52 v Australia), their heaviest loss since a 36-point thrashing at home to South Africa in August last year (16-52).
And it is not going to get any easier with world champions South Africa the visitors to the Principality Stadium on Saturday for Wales' Autumn Nations Series finale.
South Africa have emerged victorious in six of their last seven Tests against Wales (L1) and have also won each of their last three games against Wales by margins of 16+ points.
Another triumph would see Wales going the calendar year without winning a Test, which has not happened since 1937, though Howley has no doubt that Wales are in safe hands.
"We've got the best coach in the world who has had a legacy of more than 13 years," said Howley.
"He's won Grand Slams and there is no better coach to have in your camp than Warren. He gives players the confidence and self-belief they need to go out and play."
During Gatland's first stint in charge from 2008 to 2019, Wales were World Cup semi-finalists, Six Nations champions and Grand Slam winners.
This time around, amid far more challenging circumstances and attempting to mould a new squad, Wales have won just six out of his 23 Tests at the helm.
Wales have also won just one of their last 11 Test matches at the Principality Stadium, last winning in Cardiff against Argentina in November 2023.
Howley was asked if he would take an interim head coach job if Gatland departed, but responded defiantly by saying, "Warren Gatland won't leave".
Howley insists Gatland's experiences can help turn Wales around, saying: "Warren is a hugely respected coach and has coached over a number of years.
"His legacy with different teams is a winning legacy. At the moment, we are in this spell where we are losing.
"We at some point know we will win, and I hope it will be the next game on Saturday. I think at the moment we've got the best coach who has got years of experience.
"We've been in changing rooms where we've won and lost, Lions changing rooms going into the series at 1-1 with everything on the line.
"He understands rugby, and I believe Wales have got the best coach in the world to get us out of this."
Farrell backs 'composed' Prendergast to shine on first Ireland start
Andy Farrell believes Sam Prendergast is ready to step up ahead of his first Ireland start against Fiji at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday.
Farrell has made seven changes to his team, handing first caps to Leinster's Gus McCarthy and Ulster's Cormac Izuchukwu for the penultimate game of the Autumn Nations Series.
The Ireland head coach has handed Prendergast the number 10 jersey for the first time after he was used off the bench in the closing stages of last week's win over Argentina.
Prendergast has only started eight games for Leinster, but Farrell had no hesitation in handing him a first start after he impressed on the Emerging Ireland tour of South Africa.
"I'm confident from what we've seen. We took him on the Emerging [Ireland] and he played in all of those games," said Farrell.
"The aim of that was to grab hold of that team and make sure that he treated it like it was his own, as though he was in charge, and he did that in spades.
"This week we've seen the benefit of that, but we need to see it transfer, obviously.
"Yes, his character is composed, confident but yet not over-confident. He's assertive in what he wants, and he has a nice way about how he goes about his business.”
Farrell also had a glowing review for Izuchukwu, saying: "Izzy has been in and around the squad for a while. The first Emerging Ireland tour was when we first came across his ability, his athleticism, his point of difference.
"That was a couple of years ago but the improvement in his maturity of his game, because he was young in the 15-a-side game when the first tour was on, but the difference between the first and second tour was like chalk and cheese.
"His ability and potential with that maturity, he deserves a shot to show us all what he's got."
On McCarthy, who captained the Ireland Under-20s to a Six Nations Grand Slam in 2023, Farrell said: "He's been a captain and you can see why because his maturity in how he goes about the game."
He added: "We took him on the training week [to Portugal] as a development player and he showed up unbelievably well. He forced our hand to keep him in the squad first and foremost and he deserves a shot to see what he can do as well."
Ciaran Frawley also returns to the bench after missing out last weekend on the back of a poor outing against New Zealand.
And Cian Healy must wait another week for a record-breaking 134th cap - having drawn level with Brian O'Driscoll against Argentina - after the prop was left out of the 23.
Ireland team to play Fiji
Jamie Osborne; Mack Hansen, Robbie Henshaw, Bundee Aki, Jacob Stockdale; Sam Prendergast, Craig Casey; Andrew Porter, Gus McCarthy, Finlay Bealham; Joe McCarthy, Tadhg Beirne; Cormac Izuchukwu, Josh van der Flier, Caelan Doris (capt).
Replacements: Rob Herring, Tom O'Toole, Thomas Clarkson, Iain Henderson, Cian Prendergast, Conor Murray, Ciaran Frawley, Stuart McCloskey.
'World-class' Scotland will provide Wallabies' sternest test – Skelton
Australia will face their sternest test to date when they continue their autumn tour against a "world-class" Scotland team at Murrayfield on Sunday.
That is the view of forward Will Skelton, who believes the Wallabies' victories in England and Wales have brought a new energy and confidence to their camp.
Having crashed out in the pool stage at last year's World Cup in France before finishing last in the Rugby Championship, Australia have looked a team reborn in recent weeks.
A first victory at Twickenham since 2015 and a 52-20 rout of Wales – their biggest-ever away win in matches between the teams – have made it an excellent tour to date for Joe Schmidt's side.
But La Rochelle lock Skelton feels their toughest assignment is to come this week, saying: "We've won two games, we're very aware of that.
"The Test against Scotland is going to be the hardest one yet. We're excited about this weekend and we're looking forward to ripping into it.
"Physically they're up there with the top five in the world. I think set-piece wise they're really strong.
"You've got a guy like Finn Russell who's a maestro at the back there. I think it's going be a close one and we'll be up for it.
"There's some class players in the Scottish team and, when they're at it they're world-class, so we're going to have to be on top of our game."
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