Argentina (Saturday, September 9. Kick-off at 8 p.m. – Marseille)
The fact that England are a major underdog for the World Cup pool opener with Argentina shows just how far the national team has fallen.
The Pumas will be the favourite, and rightly so. They are a hugely dangerous side. They beat England at Twickenham last November and will cherish their chances of a repeat success at Marseille.
Michael Cheika’s side have a very strong pack, but they are a real threat to England behind the scrum. Steve Borthwick’s team lacks speed and creativity in the back line, but that is certainly not the case with Argentina. Emiliano Boffelli and Mateo Carreras are very dangerous players for England to keep an eye on.
Also don’t forget that England will do without the banned Owen Farrell and Billy Vunipola.
Opponent to watch: Mateo Carreras. The Newcastle winger will be well known to England fans as he scores brilliant tries in the Premier League with Newcastle week in, week out. His speed is frightening.
The fact that England are a major underdog for the World Cup pool opener with Argentina shows how far the national team has fallen
Argentina beat England at Twickenham last November and will cherish their chances of a repeat success in Marseille
Mateo Carreras is the player to watch and he currently plays for Newcastle
Prediction: England have their hands full against Argentina, but if they can sneak a win, everyone will forget their struggles in August. The Pumas game resembles a World Cup final in many ways. It’s so big.
Win and England can have a successful tournament. If you lose, they could be in big trouble. I support England to narrowly win.
Japan (Sunday, September 17. Kick-off at 8 p.m. – Nice)
I enjoyed watching Japan at the last World Cup. There was so much joy in watching them play, partly because they have been such excellent hosts in 2019, but also because of the way they approach their rugby.
Japan loved to attack and their handling of the ball by the entire team was a joy to watch. Unfortunately for them, I’m not sure they’re still the same team four years later. But that’s good news for England, who comfortably beat Japan at Twickenham last autumn.
England scored seven tries and 52 points that day in November, a far cry from what we’ve seen this summer.
Opponent to watch: Michael Leitch. At age 34, this will be Leitch’s last World Cup. What a warrior and source of inspiration he has been for his country, which has developed into an ambitious rugby country. I wish him a great farewell tournament, just not against England!
Prediction: I’m not expecting a 50-point hammer on Japan like we saw at the end of 2022, but for all their recent troubles, England should win games like this, even if Farrell will still be absent. Vunipola should be back. If England go into the game with Jamie Joseph’s side on a win over Argentina, their confidence will have improved dramatically.
There was such joy in watching Japan play, in part because they were such excellent hosts in 2019
England scored seven tries and 52 points as they defeated Japan last autumn
Chile (Saturday 23 September. Kick-off 4.45 pm – Lille)
Chile is preparing for its first World Cup. I wish them all the best, but they are nowhere near England’s level and Borthwick’s side should have way too much for the South Americans.
Opposition player to watch: Martin Sigren, who became the first Chilean to play in English professional rugby when he joined Doncaster.
Prediction: England will win this match. The question will be to what extent and whether we see a coherent picture. Point difference can play a role, so Borthwick will want to see a lot of tries.
Samoa (Saturday 7 October. Kick-off 4.45 pm – Lille)
Our game with Samoa in 2003 still gives me nightmares! At one point it looked like we were going to lose. Samoa was firing on all cylinders and leading.
We also had the incident where we accidentally fielded 16 men briefly when Dan Luger arrived and no player came out. We escaped with a fine when we could have had points deducted.
Borthwick are hoping for a much easier game than the one they faced Samoa 20 years ago
Borthwick is hoping for a much easier match than the one twenty years ago, I’m sure! But the truth is that he could develop a similar fear. Samoa are a lot stronger than in previous World Cups, having benefited from the change in World Rugby’s entry laws.
A number of former All Blacks will be at their side in France, making them a completely different species of fish. Whatever happens earlier in the group, England will have to win this game in Lille.
Opposition player to watch: Lima Sopoaga played fly-half for New Zealand, but is now Samoa’s number 10. English rugby fans will know how good a player he is from his time in the Premier League at Wasps. Pacific Island nations are always hugely physical and can create something out of nothing, but with Sopoaga at the helm, this Samoa team is in control and has a game plan too.
Prediction: Argentina and Samoa are England’s two toughest pool matches and the reality is that they can easily lose both. They also have the ability to win both, but to do so will have to be at their best and show more than we’ve seen this summer. I believe they can. England barely.