England coach Stuart Lancaster has revealed the thinking behind making six changes to his team for the visit of South Africa this weekend.
Lancaster watches his team lose to Australia most recently and now feels the need to mix things up, with Ben Youngs coming in as one of the changes.
Mike Brown, Alex Corbisiero, Joe Marler, Ben Morgan and Tom Wood are the other players to come in, making it a relatively inexperienced and experimental England side. It is one picked with stopping the South African forward line in mind.
Explaining the team selection, Lancaster said: “We have picked a team that will give us the best chance of beating South Africa.
“There were some tight calls, which is what you want as coaches, but the players we have brought into start have been training well, will bring a real motivation to make the most of their opportunity and will suit the challenge we face against a tough and physical South African team.â€
One of the main men to keep an eye on – certainly in terms of the players coming in – is Corbisiero, who has had to dramatically alter his diet to put himself in contention for England.
Revealing the hard work he has put in, the London Irish prop said: “It’s been a year-and-a-half now. I had a blood test – recommended by the nutritionist at London Irish – and it said I was highly intolerant to wheat and gluten.
“I cut them out and I feel so much better. It’s been a massive gain for me and it’s helped me keep strict with it rather than breaking it. I’ve lost a lot of body fat. I’m still heavy, but I’ve definitely lost excess fat.â€
England v South Africa takes place at Twickenham on Saturday afternoon with Lancaster hoping that his changes help the home side to what would be a credible victory against a strong side.
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