| Venue: Eden Park, Auckland Date: Saturday, 12 November Kick-off: 06:30 GMT |
| Protection: Hear on BBC Radio 5 Dwell; comply with stay textual content commentary on the BBC Sport web site and app; watch stay on ITV |
Holly Aitchison and Emily Scarratt will kind England’s beginning centre partnership for the primary time at this World Cup in Saturday’s closing in opposition to hosts and holders New Zealand.
Star full-back Helena Rowland will miss the match due to a foot damage sustained within the semi-finals.
Ellie Kildunne begins at 15 and Lydia Thompson is available in on the wing.
Claudia MacDonald strikes to the bench, offering cowl at scrum-half with Lucy Packer out of the squad.
Lock Cath O’Donnell is a shock inclusion among the many replacements, having final featured within the pool stage in opposition to France, as Rosie Galligan misses out.
Prop Hannah Botterman is unavailable due to a knee damage, that means Shaunagh Brown is as soon as once more included on the bench.
England: Kildunne; Thompson, Scarratt, Aitchison, Dow; Harrison, Infante; Cornborough, Cokayne, Bern, Aldcroft, Ward, Matthews, M Packer, Hunter (capt).
Replacements: Davies, Muir, Brown, O’Donnell, Cleall, Kabeya, MacDonald, Heard.
Middleton coy on causes for Aitchison inclusion
England have gained their previous 30 Checks, however have by no means crushed New Zealand in a World Cup closing in 4 makes an attempt.
The latest of these defeats got here in 2017, when the Black Ferns introduced a distinct gameplan to return from behind within the second half and declare the title.
With a conflict of types anticipated as England play a forwards-focused recreation and New Zealand convey an unpredictable backline, England head coach Simon Middleton understandably needed to maintain his gameplan beneath wraps.
He merely said that Aitchison had been picked as a result of she will supply his facet “sure issues” in opposition to New Zealand.
Tatyana Heard has began the previous three video games at 12 and strikes to the bench to make approach for Aitchison, whose solely begin of the event got here at 13 in opposition to South Africa within the pool stage.
Middleton has shuffled his midfield on this event earlier than – Rowland began as his 12 earlier than being moved to full-back and she or he will probably be missed after some stellar performances this World Cup.
Scarratt and Aitchison final mixed to assist England declare the Girls’s Six Nations Grand Slam in France in April and Middleton will hope they will ship beneath much more adversity at a sold-out Eden Park.
Aitchison does have kind in opposition to New Zealand, having scored a attempt on debut in opposition to the Black Ferns within the autumn of 2021.
“There could be no greater problem in sport than to play the world champions in their very own again yard in entrance of a sellout crowd – 99.9% of which will probably be forming a part of the opposition,” Middleton mentioned.
“Nice groups do not concern these challenges, they embrace them and meet them head on – that is what we intend to do.”
Contrasting with England, New Zealand director of rugby Wayne Smith has opted for consistency in his choice.
Quantity eight Charmaine McMenamin is the one change to the facet that beat France within the semi-finals, changing Liana Mikaele-Tu’u, who sustained a thumb damage in that match.
As soon as once more, the Black Ferns will discipline a formidable again three of Portia Woodman, Ruby Tui and Renee Holmes.
New Zealand: Holmes; Tui, Fluhler, Fitzpatrick, Woodman; Demant (capt), Cocksedge; Love, Ponsonby, Rule, Roos, C Bremner, A Bremner, Hirini, McMenamin.
Replacements: Connor, Murray, Taumata, Ngan-Woo, Simon, Bayler, Tubic, Leti-I’iga.
