England Secures Ninth Straight Victory Against Tough Fijian Side

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

England notched four second-half tries to defeat a tough Fijian team in their second autumn international.

The victory extends the English team's winning run to nine games and supports their triumph over the Wallabies the previous weekend.

The home side got on the board first through Luke Cowan-Dickie before the visitors responded with scores by Ikanivere and Caleb Muntz.

Number ten the Fijian playmaker missed both conversions but nailed a penalty goal to take the visitors further ahead before Immanuel Feyi-Waboso scored.

Ellis Genge and the Fijian hooker then exchanged tries to spark an thrilling final forty minutes.

Replacements George and Henry Arundell, who displayed his scintillating pace, finished off tries to take the English side into a comfortable lead.

Those scores came around Fiji scrum-half Simi Kuruvoli dropping the ball when attempting to score.

Skipper Maro Itoje, who also entered as a substitute, scored the final try.

The English team now face New Zealand next Saturday in their toughest test theoretically this fall.

Prior to this match, the English team had won eight of their nine games with the Fijian side – most lately winning 30-24 in the last eight of the 2023 World Cup.

That one defeat came just weeks before the competition in France and was a significant shift under Borthwick.

With the Pacific Islanders on a five-match winning run – their joint longest streak since the late nineties – the game was always expected to be hard-fought.

Following slick phase play, number eight Cunningham-South gained valuable meters before the hooker barged over for the first try from close range, with the Fijian's score off the back of a driving maul providing a swift reply.

Nicknamed the Flying Fijians, that was clear in defence through monstrous first-half tackles in the center, with full-back Marcus Smith, deployed as a additional playmaker, in especial targeted.

But it was the classic Fijian attacking flair that was the highlight in the opening half as passes out of the tackle cut England's defence open for Muntz to score.

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

England pulled away from Australia last Saturday in the final quarter through the impact of their replacements that included multiple Lions tourists.

A much-changed starting lineup from the win over the Australians did grab the following touchdown as the prop crossed following a strong carry by Lawrence, who was making his international comeback after suffering his Achilles versus the Italians in March.

However, after a clever line-out move was completed by Ikanivere, Borthwick unloaded five of his bench on the 54th minute – including Lions players Henry Pollock and Curry.

With the match still in the balance, Fiji scrum-half Kuruvoli fumbled of the ball when reaching for the tryline to cancel out substitute George's try.

Flanker Ben Earl, a try-scorer versus Australia, produced a stunning try-saving tackle to maintain a narrow lead between the sides.

It topped off another outstanding overall display by Earl, who picked up consecutive player-of-the-match awards.

Arundell's pace to chase down a kick through demonstrated exactly why England's bench is so impactful.

It is full of stars and talent, which has helped secure wins in the final quarter that were squandered against the Wallabies and New Zealand last autumn.

Considering Scotland ran New Zealand close, Borthwick's side will fancy their chances of making a big statement this weekend.

If successful, 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)