The English Team Earns 9th Straight Victory Over Tough Fiji

Quilter Nations Series

England (14) 38

Tries: Cowan-Dickie, Feyi-Waboso, Genge, George, Arundell, Itoje Cons: F Smith 5

Fiji (13) 18

Tries: Ikanivere 2, Muntz Pen: Muntz

The English squad racked up 4 tries after halftime to beat a physical Fijian team in their latest autumn international.

The victory continues the English team's winning run to nine games and follows up their win over Australia the previous weekend.

England got on the board first through hooker Cowan-Dickie before the visitors responded with tries by Ikanivere and Muntz.

Fly-half the Fijian playmaker missed both conversions but slotted a penalty to take the Fijians further clear before Feyi-Waboso crossed.

Ellis Genge and the Fijian hooker then traded scores to spark an exciting second half.

Substitutes George and Arundell, who displayed his scintillating pace, touched down to take the English side clear.

Those scores came either side of Fiji scrum-half Kuruvoli fumbling the ball when attempting to score.

Skipper Maro Itoje, who also came off the bench, grabbed the final try.

Borthwick's side now meet New Zealand next Saturday in their biggest challenge theoretically this autumn.

Fiji Start Fast to Challenge The English

Prior to this encounter, the English team had won eight of their nine games with Fiji – most lately taking 30-24 in the last eight of the 2023 World Cup.

That one defeat came just weeks before the tournament in France and was a major turning point under the head coach.

With Fiji on a five-match winning run – their equal best streak since the late nineties – the fixture was always likely to be tight.

Following slick phase play, back rower Cunningham-South gained valuable meters before Cowan-Dickie forced his way over for the opening score from close range, with the Fijian's score off the back of a driving maul adding a swift reply.

Nicknamed the flying Fijians, that was apparent in defense through monstrous opening period tackles in the center, with full-back Marcus Smith, deployed as a second playmaker, in particular picked out.

But it was the classic Fijian attacking flair that was the standout moment in the opening half as offloads sliced through the English defense for Muntz to score.

Feyi-Waboso expertly collected a cross-field kick by Fin Smith to take England into the lead after he had been illegally challenged in the air by Ravutaumada, who was given a yellow card following a video review.

England's Star Bench Shines Once More

The English team pulled away from the Wallabies last Saturday in the final quarter through the impact of their replacements that contained six Lions tourists.

A significantly altered starting lineup from the victory over the Wallabies did score the following touchdown as Genge crossed following a strong carry by Ollie Lawrence, who was making his international comeback after tearing his Achilles versus the Italians in March.

Nonetheless, after a clever set piece was finished by Ikanivere, Borthwick unloaded several of his substitutes on the 54th minute – including Lions players Henry Pollock and Curry.

With the match still up for grabs, Fijian number nine the halfback fumbled of the ball when stretching for the tryline to cancel out replacement George's try.

Flanker Earl, a try-scorer against the Wallabies, produced a stunning try-saving tackle to maintain a narrow lead between the teams.

It capped another outstanding overall performance by Earl, who received back-to-back player-of-the-match awards.

The substitute's speed to race on to a kick through demonstrated exactly why England's bench is so influential.

It is packed with stars and talent, which has helped secure wins in the closing stages that were lost versus the Wallabies and New Zealand last autumn.

Given Scotland pushed the All Blacks hard, Borthwick's side will fancy their chances of making a big statement next week.

Should they win, the bench will probably again be crucial.

Team Sheets

England: M Smith; Freeman, Lawrence, Dingwall, Feyi-Waboso; F Smith, Mitchell; Genge, Cowan-Dickie, Heyes, Coles, Chessum, Pepper, Earl, Cunningham-South

Replacements: George, Baxter, Opoku-Fordjour, Itoje, T Curry, Pollock, Spencer, Arundell

Fiji: Rayasi; Ravutaumada, Ravouvou, Tuisova, Wainiqolo; Muntz, Kuruvoli; Mawi, Ikanivere, Doge, Nasilasila, Mayanavanua, Sowakula, Canakaivata, Mata

Replacements: Togiatama, Hetet, Tawake, Vocevoce, Murray, Wye, Armstrong-Ravula, Maqala

Sin-bin: Ravutaumada