England vs Fiji - Borthwick's Expected Team For Final Summer Nations Series Match

Defeat against Fiji at Twickenham would be disastrous for England, as Borthwick's side look to bounce back from the poor display against Ireland last weekend. Andy Farrell's 2023 Grand Slam Champions ran roughshod over England in Dublin, with a comfortable 29-10 win at the Aviva Stadium.

England will once again be without their captain Owen Farrell, who's high tackle offence sees him banned until after the first two pool stage matches of the Rugby World Cup (against Argentina and Japan). Farrell's Saracens teammate Billy Vunipola will also miss out on the match against Fiji, following his ban for the red card he picked up last weekend at the Aviva Stadium.

In similar style to Farrell, Vunipola was initially shown a yellow card for a high tackle offence, and was sent to the bunker to await the 'off-field review.' The yellow card was then upgraded to a red, with Vunipola's ban confirmed this morning to be a three game ban. However, the number eight can reduce the ban to two games if he attends a tackling school.

This confirms Vunipola's absence in Saturday's match against Fiji, and the World Cup opener against Argentina on September 9th in Marseille. Borthwick will have to shuffle the deck to select his replacement in the eight jersey. The England Head Coach previously dropped Alex Dombrandt and Zach Mercer, leaving Vunipola as the only specialist number eight in the selected 33-man Rugby World Cup squad.

Here is RUCK's prediction, for the expected England team to face Fiji this Saturday at Twickenham.

15. Freddie Steward (Leicester Tigers)

14. Max Malins (Bristol Bears)

11. Elliot Daly (Saracens)

Borthwick will need to find a key balance between first team starters and reinforcements for this match, as he needs to secure a win, yet must avoid picking up any injuries so close to the Rugby World Cup. We've recalled Freddie Steward and Elliot Daly to the starting XV from last weekend, yet swapped out key winger Anthony Watson for Max Malins on the right hand side.

13. Joe Marchant (Stade Francais)

12. Ollie Lawrence (Bath Rugby)

After a career riddled with injuries, we have opted to drop Manu Tuilagi to the bench. This reduces the risk of the Sale centre picking up an injury so close to the trip to France, as he can come on to run riot over the tiring Fijians in the second half. The Ollie Lawrence and Joe Marchant partnership returns from the second test match against Wales, with Marchant a key utility option to push out wide to the wing.

10. Marcus Smith (Harlequins)

9. Danny Care (Harlequins)

The Harlequins duo of Smith and Care could be seen as the second string halfback partnership behind Ford and Youngs, with Owen Farrell set to miss the opening two matches of the Rugby World Cup campaign.

Following Jack van Poortvliet's injury, the Youngs-Ford collaboration is Borthwick's most tried and tested method from his days as Leicester Tigers Head Coach, and will need to keep fully fit for the opening rounds in France. The Quins duo get our pick to start on Saturday, with both Smith and Care out with a point to prove.

1 Ellis Genge (Captain) (Bristol Bears)

2. Jamie George (Saracens)

3. Kyle Sinckler (Bristol Bears)

With Owen Farrell out for his ban, Borthwick needs leaders across the park on Saturday. We believe that Borthwick will pick Ellis Genge to lead the side out, in an attempt to secure his first win as England captain, in his third attempt (France at Twickenham in Six Nations, and Wales in Cardiff). Jamie George partners him once again, with Kyle Sinckler set to state his claim for the number three jersey after being pushed down the recent pecking order by Will Stuart.

4. Maro Itoje (Saracens)

5. Ollie Chessum (Leicester Tigers)

Ollie Chessum made his long awaited return to England action last weekend, as he came off the bench for David Ribbans at the Aviva Stadium. We believe Chessum will start from the get-go this Saturday, with Maro Itoje partnering him to re-unite the second row duo that packed down the scrum during the 2023 Six Nations.

6. Courtney Lawes (Vice Captain) (Northampton Saints)

7. Jack Willis (Toulouse)

8. Ben Earl (Saracens)

The back row was the hardest piece of Borthwick's puzzle to put together. With Billy Vunipola now banned, there are no specialist number eights eligible in the England squad for the Rugby World Cup. Tom Curry was in a protective boot just three weeks ago, and Borthwick may not want to risk an early return to action for the Sale Sharks man.

Ben Earl has some experience in the eight shirt, having sporadically played at the back of the scrum for Saracens in recent years. Jack Willis is more of an out-and-out flanker with Toulouse, yet can cover the eight jersey if called upon. Despite his versatility across the locks and flanks, Courtney Lawes is better suited to starting at six than eight, with England's back-row conundrum wrapping up the starting XV for Saturday.

Following the Twickenham victory over Wales a fortnight ago, Joe Marler gave us a secret spoiler as he did not give his shirt to a fan. He understandably wanted to keep the number one jersey, after apologising to the young fan and saying "it's my last one", in what could possibly be referencing a start at Twickenham.

We've kept Marler out of the squad, with third-choice loosehead Bevan Rodd on the bench to get an extended run-out before the Rugby World Cup. Following the same style as last weekend, we have not selected a back-three player on Borthwick's bench. Instead, we have Tuilagi amongst the re-enforcements, ready to turn-around the game if Fiji take the lead.

The halfback duo of George Ford and Ben Youngs are amongst the replacements, with Joe Marchant likely to once again push out to the wing, as the bench is emptied out in the latter stages of the match.

16. Theo Dan (Saracens)

17. Bevan Rodd (Sale Sharks)

18. Will Stuart (Bath Rugby)

19. David Ribbans (Northampton Saints)

20. Lewis Ludlam (Northampton Saints)

21. Ben Youngs (Leicester Tigers)

22. George Ford (Sale Sharks)

23. Manu Tuilagi (Sale Sharks)