England hoping to end 'rollercoaster year' on high

New Zealand v England 2nd Test

Date: Saturday, 13 July Kick-off: 08:05 BST Venue: Eden Park, Auckland

Coverage: Listen to unrecorded commentary connected BBC Radio 5 Live and BBC Sounds and travel unrecorded matter commentary connected nan BBC Sport website and app.

Captain Jamie George hopes England tin headdress disconnected a "rollercoaster of a year" by inflicting New Zealand's first conclusion astatine Eden Park for 30 years.

England mislaid 16-15 to nan All Blacks successful Dunedin successful nan first crippled of their two-Test series, which concludes successful Auckland connected Saturday.

Eleven months person passed since Steve Borthwick's broadside mislaid 3 of their 4 games during a stuttering build-up for nan Rugby World Cup, nan debased constituent being a first-ever location conclusion by Fiji.

In France, England came wrong a fewer minutes of reaching nan last and yet vanished third, earlier putting successful a creditable Six Nations showing.

Further awesome displays successful Japan and New Zealand person accrued hopes of what would beryllium a historical England triumph connected Saturday.

Saracens hooker George told nan BBC's Rugby Union Daily podcast: "If you deliberation astir nan Fiji crippled astatine Twickenham each those months ago, nan travel this squad has been connected and nan benignant of trajectory we're looking for illustration we're going connected now has been immense and [it has been] a rollercoaster of a year.

"The World Cup, nan disappointment against South Africa [in nan semi-final], a immense triumph astatine location against Ireland and moving France adjacent - we put our hands up to triumph that Six Nations.

"Going to Eden Park and winning this play would headdress disconnected an astonishing twelvemonth for English rugby very nicely."

England's caller advancement was exemplified by their capacity successful Dunedin, wherever they fell conscionable short of a first triumph against nan All Blacks successful New Zealand since 2003.

Borthwick said: "For 50 minutes, nan players were affirmative and fierce pinch nan ball.

"If there's 1 area I'd want to amended upon, location was a emotion midway done nan 2nd half that we weren't arsenic fierce pinch nan shot arsenic we wanted to be.

"We've sewage specified talent, gait and accomplishment wrong this team. I want nan players to spell connected to nan writer connected Saturday and play big."

The situation awaiting England connected Saturday is one of nan astir fierce successful world rugby.

France were nan past squad to hit New Zealand astatine Eden Park successful 1994, while England person mislaid connected their past 4 visits since their astir caller triumph location successful 1973.

"We perfectly respect everything that nan All Blacks are astir and their grounds astatine Eden Park, but astatine nan aforesaid clip if we're not present to triumph past we shouldn't beryllium here," said George.

Earlier this week connected nan Rugby Union Daily podcast, location was optimism that England could level nan series.

"I deliberation England will beryllium very assured that they will triumph this weekend," said ex-England scrum-half Danny Care, while erstwhile winger Ugo Monye added: "I don't deliberation they'll beryllium bothered aliases intimidated by going to Eden Park.

"Everyone will talk astir nan history, but half of nan squad aliases much will beryllium like: 'Oh right, I didn't cognize that'. So that history is not thing that weighs them down.

"They're playing for illustration a liberated team. I deliberation England are bully capable to hit nan All Blacks astatine Eden Park, because whilst their grounds is perfectly outstanding, this isn't nan champion All Blacks broadside we've seen successful 30 years arsenic well."

However, ex-England winger Chris Ashton expects an improved New Zealand capacity successful Auckland.

"New Zealand are notoriously slow starters, particularly erstwhile you've sewage a caller group together and a caller coach," he said. "If England were going to win, I deliberation it was going to beryllium [in nan first Test].

"At Eden Park - there's a logic they haven't mislaid location for 30 years. They're going to beryllium truthful overmuch amended this weekend."

England person made 2 injury-enforced changes to their starting XV, pinch prop Fin Baxter replacing Harlequins team-mate Joe Marler and Freddie Steward coming successful for George Furbank astatine full-back.

Borthwick said he "could not picture really important and valuable" it was that Marler had stayed pinch nan squad to "help nan younger players successful nan group", alternatively than alert location erstwhile his absence from nan 2nd Test was confirmed.

As for Baxter, George was hugely impressed pinch nan 22-year-old prop's world debut from nan chair successful nan first Test.

He said: "It was a daunting business for him to travel into; a mates of scrum penalties didn't spell our way, coming connected 20 minutes into nan crippled - you ne'er expect to do that, arsenic a loose-head prop anyway, truthful he astir apt wasn't that warm.

"He's an incredibly beardown scrummager and we've known that for a while, but what pleased maine astir was his activity astir nan section and his contacts. He was very impressive."

New Zealand: Perofeta; Reece, Ioane, J Barrett, Tele'a; McKenzie, Christie; De Groot, Taylor, Lomax, S Barrett (capt), Tuipulotu, Finau, Papali'i, Savea.

Replacements: Aumua, Tu'ungafasi, Newell, Vaa'i, Jacobson, Ratima, Lienert-Brown, B Barrett.

England: Steward; Feyi-Waboso, Slade, Lawrence, Freeman; M Smith, Mitchell; Baxter, George (capt), Stuart, Itoje, Martin, Cunningham-South, Underhill, Earl.

Replacements: Dan, Rodd, Cole, Coles, Curry, Spencer, F Smith, Sleightholme.

Referee: Nic Berry (Australia).