England Secures Ninth Straight Victory Against Physical Fijian Side

Autumn International 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

England notched 4 tries after halftime to defeat a tough Fijian team in their second autumn international.

This win extends Steve Borthwick's side's undefeated streak to nine matches and backs up their win over Australia the previous weekend.

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

Fly-half the Fijian playmaker missed both conversions but slotted a penalty goal to take the visitors further ahead before Immanuel Feyi-Waboso scored.

Prop Genge and the Fijian hooker then exchanged tries to spark an thrilling second half.

Replacements Jamie George and Henry Arundell, who demonstrated his blistering speed, finished off tries to take the hosts clear.

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

England captain Maro Itoje, who also entered as a substitute, grabbed the last touchdown.

The English team now face the All Blacks this coming weekend in their toughest test on paper this autumn.

Prior to this match, England had claimed victory in 8 of their nine games with Fiji – most recently winning 30-24 in the last eight of the 2023 World Cup.

Their sole loss came two months prior the competition in Europe and was a significant shift under Borthwick.

With Fiji on a five-match winning run – their joint longest run since the late nineties – the fixture was always expected to be tight.

Following smooth attacking phases, number eight Cunningham-South made good ground before the hooker forced his way over for the opening score from close range, with Ikanivere's try off the back of a driving maul adding a quick response.

Nicknamed the Flying Fijians, that was evident in defence through huge opening period midfield hits, with number fifteen Marcus Smith, used as a additional playmaker, in particular targeted.

But it was the vintage attacking Fijian flare that was the highlight in the opening half as offloads cut England's defence open for Muntz to score.

The winger sharply finished a cross-field kick by Fin Smith to take England ahead after he had been dangerously taken out in the air by Selestino Ravutaumada, who was given a sin-binning following a video review.

England pulled away from the Wallabies last Saturday in the final quarter through the power of their bench that contained six Lions tourists.

A significantly altered starting lineup from the win over the Australians did grab the following touchdown as Genge went over following a powerful run by Ollie Lawrence, who was making his international comeback after suffering his Achilles tendon versus Italy in spring.

However, after a clever set piece was completed by the Fijian, the coach introduced several of his bench on the 54-minute mark – featuring Lions players Henry Pollock and Curry.

With the game still up for grabs, Fiji scrum-half Kuruvoli fumbled of the ball when stretching for the tryline to cancel out replacement George's try.

Breakdown specialist Ben Earl, a try-scorer versus Australia, produced a stunning game-saving stop to maintain breathing room between the sides.

It capped another all-round impressive display by Earl, who received consecutive player-of-the-match awards.

Arundell's pace to race on to a grubber kick demonstrated exactly why England's bench is so impactful.

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

Given Scotland pushed the All Blacks hard, the English team will fancy their chances of making a big statement this weekend.

Should they win, the substitutes will likely play another key factor.

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

Referee: Paul Williams (New Zealand)

Assistant referee: Luc Ramos (France) and Katsuki Furuse (Japan)

Television match official: Mike Adamson (Scotland)