Monday 19 November 2012

Stuart Lancaster to set to change pack for Springboks clash

England coach Stuart Lancaster looks set to make changes to the pack for Saturday's showdown with South Africa at Twickenham.
England were beaten 20-14 by Australia on Saturday and a major surprise was that Lancaster's pack failed to dominate up front.
The Wallabies pack had been taken apart by France the previous week, but England could make little headway and South Africa will present the forwards with an even more formidable challenge.
At least one change will be forced upon Lancaster, with Joe Marler almost certainly ruled out with a knee injury, but the England coach hinted that there could well be more against the Springboks who have beaten Ireland and Scotland in their first two tour matches.
"The priority now is to get the selection right, with the physicality of the Springboks," he told Sky Sports. "Changes in personnel will give us some impetus.
"Ben Morgan scored a hat-trick (for Gloucester) at the weekend, James Haskell is desperate for an opportunity, Tom Wood is ready for a start, Alex Corbesiero is coming back. They will come into the equation."
England have come under fire - from Sir Clive Woodward amongst others - for their decision-making against a weakened Wallabies side, in particular for turning down two chances to kick penalties at 20-14 down with a quarter of the match left.
Lancaster said: "We had two meetings, one with the decision-makers on the field, and reviewed the decisions we made - some were good, some less so. They we put that to the whole group.
"A lot has been made about the penalties. Everyone is entitled to their opinions. But Danny Care took a quick tap and Manu Tuilagi scored a great try at the end of the first half. There are definitely one or two decisions in hindsight...but hindsight is a wonderful thing."
http://www1.skysports.com/rugby-union/news/12504/8259891/Stuart-Lancaster-to-set-to-change-pack-for-Springboks-clash 

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