- 1 England vs Japan: Pollock’s two tries, five absentees and Eddie Jones back at Twickenham
- 2 England: seven tries against Australia, but Chessum, Furbank and Atkinson look set to miss out
- 3 Japan: a losing bonus in Cardiff, and five points from four games
- 4 Free Rugby Prediction: England vs Japan
- 5 About our free predictions
- 6 No commitment from us
- 7 Information changes
- 8 Your responsibility
- 9 Responsible gambling
- 10 Legal age
- 11 About visuals
England vs Japan: Pollock’s two tries, five absentees and Eddie Jones back at Twickenham
Henry Pollock came on at half-time against Australia on Sunday, played on the wing in place of the injured Immanuel Feyi-Waboso, and scored twice. England won 45-22, their highest total in that fixture, with seven tries.
Six days later Pollock may start in the back row instead. Steve Borthwick has said he “might be needed” there, because Tom Curry is out for the rest of the campaign with a hip injury and Ben Curry is unlikely to start.
England vs Japan is on Saturday 14 November at Allianz Stadium, Twickenham, with kick-off at 16:40 UK time and live coverage on ITV1. It’s round five of the Nations Championship.
England have won all six capped meetings with Japan. The last two finished 52-17 in Tokyo and 59-14 at Twickenham on 24 November 2024, when Jamie George and Luke Cowan-Dickie scored two tries each in a nine-try win.
Japan lost 28-21 to Wales in Cardiff on Saturday and took a losing bonus point. Eddie Jones, the former England coach, said errors near the try line had cost them, and I think he’ll get the same problem in front of a bigger, faster England pack.
The calendar doesn’t let up for either side. England host New Zealand at the same ground on 21 November, and Japan travel to Edinburgh to play Scotland, with the hemisphere placings deciding the finals weekend matchups at Twickenham from 27 to 29 November.
England: seven tries against Australia, but Chessum, Furbank and Atkinson look set to miss out 
The try list against Australia was spread across the team: Pollock twice, then George, Ollie Chessum, Joe Heyes, Jack van Poortvliet and Ben Spencer. Fin Smith converted five of the seven. Pollock’s two took him to four tries in the competition, after two in July.
Feyi-Waboso hurt his right ankle in a tackle by Angus Bell in the first half and won’t play again in the competition. Chessum (shoulder), George Furbank (groin) and Seb Atkinson (hip) are all in rehab and expected to miss Japan, with England hoping to have them back for New Zealand on 21 November.
Borthwick made six changes to his training squad on Monday. Noah Caluori, Max Ojomoh, Tobias Elliott, Jack Kenningham, Max Hicks and Archie McParland came in, and Harry Randall was left out.
Marcus Smith looks the likeliest to cover full-back. The 12 shirt is between Ojomoh and Fraser Dingwall, and Cadan Murley is the leading candidate to replace Feyi-Waboso on the wing.
England are on 15 points, level with Ireland and two behind France in the Northern section, and second on points difference. A bonus-point win keeps them in the race for the final at Twickenham on 29 November.
Maro Itoje is set to captain the side. With George, Ellis Genge and Joe Heyes all in contention for the bench, England’s front-row depth is the strongest part of the squad going into a six-day turnaround.
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Japan: a losing bonus in Cardiff, and five points from four games 
Japan’s three tries in Cardiff came from Ben Gunter and captain Warner Dearns in the first half and Kenta Fukuda off the bench. Fukuda’s try cut the deficit to seven, and that’s how it finished.
The one win in Japan’s campaign came in July, 27-10 against Italy in Tokyo. They’re fifth of six in the Southern section with five points.
Jones returned for a second spell in charge in 2024. He took England to the 2019 World Cup final, and Jamie George said this week: “We’re never sure what Eddie’s going to throw at us.”
The head-to-head offers Japan little. England won 34-12 in the 2023 World Cup pool stage, 52-17 in Tokyo in 2024 and 59-14 at Twickenham later that year, a combined margin of 102 points across three Tests.
Japan go to Edinburgh to play Scotland on 21 November. That leaves Jones a week’s turnaround of his own, with a second away Test straight after this one.
No Japan team had been named by Tuesday. The match-day 23 is usually confirmed 24 to 48 hours before kick-off.
Warner Dearns’ first-half try in Cardiff came from the second row, and the lock’s work at the lineout will decide how much ball Japan get. Against an England pack that scored five of its seven tries through forwards on Sunday, that’s the area where Jones needs the most from his captain.
Probable lineup England: M. Smith; Freeman, Slade, Ojomoh, Murley; F. Smith, Van Poortvliet; Baxter, Cowan-Dickie, Stuart, Itoje (capt), Martin, Hicks, Pollock, Fisilau. Bench: George, Genge, Heyes, Coles, Earl, Spencer, Joseph, Caluori
Probable lineup Japan: Not announced at time of publication
Free Rugby Prediction: England vs Japan
Our prediction: England -22.5 on the handicap
England scored 45 against Australia, and they’ve beaten Japan by 22, 35 and 45 points in the last three meetings. Japan have one win in four in this competition, against an Italy side that has lost every game.
The injuries are the case against a big margin. Losing Chessum, Furbank, Atkinson, Feyi-Waboso and Tom Curry in one week takes a lot of experience out of the side, and Japan kept Wales to 28 points last Saturday.
I’d still back England to win by more than 22. The bench Borthwick can pick from is far stronger than anything Japan bring, and Japan’s last visit here ended 59-14.
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