England head coach Eddie Jones has named his strongest team possible to face minnows Tonga in their Rugby World Cup opening game in Japan on Sunday.
Fans had thought that he may use this game to ease players into the tournament as Tonga are one of the lesser teams in the competition however, Jones has decided to take no risks as his team look to open their campaign with a bang.
In the front-row Joe Marler and Kyle Sinckler are either side of Jamie George, with Courtney Lawes and Maro Itoje behind them in the second-row.
The pack is completed by a terrifying trio of Tom Curry, Sam Underhill and Billy Vunipola, as the forwards will look to dominate the Tongans physically to allow the backs time to show their class.
Ben Youngs is joined by George Ford in the half-backs, meaning that captain Owen Farrell opens the game at inside-centre and has Manu Tuilago outside him for support.
The back-three is full of pace and power with Jonny May on the left-wing, Anthony Watson on the right and Elliot Daly at full-back.
There is a serious threat on the bench too with the likes of George Kruis, Lewis Ludlam, Henry Slade and Jonathan Joseph among the replacements.
Speaking ahead of the game Jones has confirmed that England’s sights are firmly set on Tonga and that he is looking for his team to put in a solid performance against a well-drilled outfit.
“The focus this week has been about getting right for Tonga. We have had a good seven days in Japan where we have acclimatised really well, our sleep patterns are good and the physical conditioning of the players is outstanding. We have been able to add a bit more on our team togetherness and cohesion too. Now it is about putting in a game plan against Tonga and it is important to be tactically right. We know they are going to be ferocious and full of pride and passion. They are a side if they get a bit of momentum they can be very dangerous and are well-coached by Toutai Kefu. They have a great World Cup record and we will need to be at our best on Sunday,” he said.
England will want to get off on the right-foot following their horrendous showing at the last World Cup where they exited at the pool stages and after naming such a strong team against a Tongan side that recently lost 92-7 to the All Blacks, one would imagine that they should start this tournament brightly.
Check Out the Full 23-Man Squad Below.
Starting XV:
15 Elliot Daly (Saracens, 33 caps)
14 Anthony Watson (Bath Rugby, 36 caps)
13 Manu Tuilagi (Leicester Tigers, 35 caps)
12 Owen Farrell (Saracens, 73 caps) C
11 Jonny May (Leicester Tigers, 47 caps)
10 George Ford (Leicester Tigers, 59 caps)
9 Ben Youngs (Leicester Tigers, 89 caps)
1 Joe Marler (Harlequins, 62 caps)
2 Jamie George (Saracens, 40 caps)
3 Kyle Sinckler (Harlequins, 25 caps)
4 Courtney Lawes (Northampton Saints, 75 caps)
5 Maro Itoje (Saracens, 29 caps)
6 Tom Curry (Sale Sharks, 13 caps)
7 Sam Underhill (Bath Rugby, 10 caps)
8 Billy Vunipola (Saracens, 45 caps)
Replacements:
16 Luke Cowan-Dickie (Exeter Chiefs, 15 caps)
17 Ellis Genge (Leicester Tigers, 12 caps )
18 Dan Cole (Leicester Tigers, 89 caps)
19 George Kruis (Saracens, 35 caps)
20 Lewis Ludlam (Northampton Saints, 2 caps)
21 Willi Heinz (Gloucester Rugby, 4 caps)
22 Henry Slade (Exeter Chiefs, 22 caps)
23 Jonathan Joseph (Bath Rugby, 42 caps)
