Wales v England: Which players need to impress most as England begin World Cup countdown?

England’s World Cup countdown begins in earnest on Saturday with their first warm-up match against Wales in Cardiff.

Borthwick indicated that the majority of his squad has been finalised with only “one or two places” still to be decided.

So which players need to cement their place in the final squad? And who needs a big performance to force their way into the starting XV for the opener against Argentina on 9 September in Marseille?

Who can force their way into Borthwick’s plans?

Max Malins is the only player from the Premiership final in Saturday’s starting XV as Borthwick chose to rest key personnel and give opportunities to some new faces.

Flanker Tom Pearson will make his debut, while fellow uncapped forwards Theo Dan and Tom Willis are on the bench, and Leicester Tigers’ George Martin wins his second cap two years after making his debut as a 19-year-old.

At the time, Eddie Jones described Martin as an “old-fashioned six” but added with time he may “be able to play lock as well.” Now, aged 22 and a Premiership winner, he gets his chance in the second row where his size and physicality should bolster England’s forward power.

“In terms of how he plays the game and the way he hits tackles, not many players are at that standard,” former England international Chris Ashton told the Rugby Union Weekly podcast.

Bath winger Joe Cokanasiga, who made a try-scoring debut against Japan in 2018 as a 21-year-old, is another player capped young by Jones who has struggled to maintain his spot in national squads.

Cokanasiga, who has 12 tries in 12 caps, made the 2019 World Cup squad and brings extra size and strength to the backs.

Ashton hopes England’s coaching staff will use Cokanasiga, now 25, in the same way they deployed Fijian powerhouse Nemani Nadolo when they were working at Leicester.

“I am thinking England are going to use big Joe as a carry option,” said Ashton, who played under Borthwick and assistant coaches Kevin Sinfield and Wigglesworth at Leicester.

“Get the ball in his hands – we’ve seen him too many times in an England shirt not get the ball and be used in the right way.”

Kicking game or running rugby?

Borthwick won the Premiership as head coach of Leicester Tigers in 2022 playing percentage rugby – which in simple terms means kicking the ball more than running it.

One player who struggled to fit into Borthwick’s style of play during the Six Nations was Harlequins fly-half Marcus Smith who excels for his club playing an expansive style of running rugby.

With his inclusion against Wales alongside club team-mate Danny Care, is Borthwick trying to marry the two styles?

“If he [Smith] wants to be that starting 10 and a world-class international fly-half he needs to do both,” Ugo Monye told the Rugby Union Weekly podcast.

“I think we will get a team who are set up to play first but understand if they are not going anywhere after the first two or three phases, then they have a brilliant kick-chase game to go to.”

With Borthwick set to bring all three fly-halves currently in the squad to France, and Owen Farrell set to start as captain of the side, Smith may be a creative option off the bench ahead of George Ford.

Gatland protecting ‘expectation’

Head coach Warren Gatland has spoken this summer about wanting to “change the negative narrative” around Welsh rugby. This comes after the experienced trio of Alun Wyn Jones, Justin Tipuric and Rhys Webb all announced they will not be going to this World Cup.

Gatland has named three new caps to start against England, with a further two new caps potentially coming off the bench, while Ospreys flanker Jac Morgan will captain Wales for the first time in the absence of injured hooker Ken Owens.

Gatland, 59, has won only one game since returning as head coach after his successful spell in charge from 2007-2019, which included three Grand Slams.

Although Leigh Halfpenny wins his 100th Wales cap at full-back, picking an inexperienced side might give Gatland “wiggle room” if the performance is disappointing.

“It is a smart selection from Wales,” Monye added. “Of course you would have wanted to give opportunities to players and mix and mingle.

“It protects the expectation and puts out some of the animosity and opinion that has been surrounding Wales for what feels like quite a long time.”

Line-ups

Wales: Halfpenny; Rees-Zammit, North, Llewellyn, Dyer; Costelow, Davies; Domachowski, Elias, Assiratti, Jenkins, Rowlands, Tshiunza, Morgan (captain), Wainwright.

Replacements: Dee, Smith, Thomas, Carter, Plumtree, Williams, Biggar, Grady.

England: Steward; Malins, Marchant, Porter, Cokanasiga; Smith, Care; Genge (capt), Blamire, Stuart; Ribbans, Martin; Ludlam, Pearson, Dombrandt.

Replacements: Dan, Rodd, Sinckler, Hill, T Willis, Van Poortvliet, Ford, Slade.

Referee: Nic Berry (Australia)