England vs Ireland team announcement LIVE: Eddie Jones names side for Autumn Nations Cup
Follow the latest updates as Jones names his matchday squad before holding his pre-match press conference
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Follow the latest updates live from England’s team announcement ahead of their Autumn Nations Cup clash against Ireland as Eddie Jones names his squad this morning.
England go into the Group A showdown top of the table, having trounced Georgia 40-0 last weekend to make a winning start to their Autumn Nations Cup campaign, which comes straight off the back of their Six Nations title triumph. But Ireland sit just one point behind them after their 32-9 victory over Wales in the tournament curtain-raiser, and will have enjoyed an extra day’s rest when the game kicks off at Twickenham this Saturday afternoon.
Ireland boss Andy Farrell named his side yesterday that showed four changes as Bundee Aki, Keith Earls, Ross Byrne and CJ Stander all start, with captain Johnny Sexton ruled out through injury and lock James Ryan leading the team in his absence. England have George Ford back to fitness and available to start, with Jones expected to make plenty of changes from the team that breezed past Georgia last weekend. Follow the live updates below.
England vs Ireland team news
And that’s all from Eddie Jones this morning!
England vs Ireland team news
EJ: “We’re not in control of the Irish selection, we only control our selection and we’ve picked our best team. We’re treating the opposition as an Irish team and every Irish team I’ve faced has been hard-working, skilled and doesn’t give you anything. Their coaching team says they were dominant, so the question is can they be dominant at Twickenham?”
England vs Ireland team news
EJ: “We had a bit of a different week, we had a longer session on Monday that Joseph didn’t participate in, but then we had our double-session on Wednesday and he played a full part in that.”
England vs Ireland team news
EJ: “Ford’s a very important player, he’s played 69 Tests and for him to come on in the final stage of the game with his tactical kicking and ball distribution. He’ll be very important for us.”
England vs Ireland team news
EJ: “We’re just grateful for the opportunity to play top-level rugby in the environment now where things are so difficult. Just look at the number of people being affected by coronavirus now, people dying every day and the number of cases every day. Just the other day I was speaking to someone in the squad who had three people in their family lose their jobs.”
England vs Ireland team news
EJ: “Our intensity is always pretty good, but definitely there’s a bit more edge around the place. All the guys know that Ireland is a very tough team, 18 months ago they were ranked No 1 in the world. ”
England vs Ireland team news
EJ: “The Irish and England games are always big. It’s like when we go to Landsdowne Road it’s a huge game. It’s a traditional rival game and we always want to do well.”
England vs Ireland team news
EJ: “Ireland were very happy with their dominant performance against Wales. I know Andy Farrell well, they’ll be well prepared and they come to Twickenham with a point to prove, which is always dangerous.”
England vs Ireland team news
EJ: “We feel that’s our strongest back row for this game. Playing against Ireland, the number on poaching team in Europe, Sam Underhill and Tom Curry are outstanding in that area.”
England vs Ireland team news
Eddie Jones has arrived, and off we go.
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