England Claims 9th Straight Victory Against Physical Fijian Side

Autumn International Series

England (14) 38

Tries: Cowan-Dickie, Feyi-Waboso, Genge, George, Arundell, Itoje Cons: F Smith 5

Fiji (13) 18

Tries: Ikanivere 2, Muntz Pen: Muntz

The English squad racked up four tries after halftime to overcome a resilient Fijian team in their latest autumn international.

The victory extends Steve Borthwick's side's winning run to nine matches and backs up their win over Australia last Saturday.

England got on the board first through hooker Cowan-Dickie before the visitors answered back with tries by Ikanivere and Muntz.

Fly-half Muntz failed to convert either try but kicked a penalty to take the Fijians further clear before Feyi-Waboso crossed.

Prop Genge and Ikanivere then exchanged tries to ignite an exciting second half.

Substitutes George and Arundell, who showed his blistering speed, finished off tries to take the English side into a comfortable lead.

These tries came around Fijian halfback Kuruvoli fumbling the ball when attempting to score.

Skipper Maro Itoje, who also came off the bench, secured the last touchdown.

Borthwick's side now face the All Blacks this coming weekend in their biggest challenge on paper this autumn.

Before this meeting, the English team had claimed victory in 8 of their nine games with Fiji – most recently taking 30-24 in the quarter-finals of the 2023 World Cup.

That one defeat came just weeks before the tournament in France and was a significant shift under Borthwick.

With the Pacific Islanders on a five-game streak – their joint longest run since the late nineties – the game was always likely to be hard-fought.

Following slick phase play, number eight Chandler Cunningham-South made good ground before the hooker barged over for the opening score from close range, with the Fijian's score off the back of a driving maul adding a quick response.

Known as the Flying Fijians, that was clear in defense through powerful first-half tackles in the center, with number fifteen Marcus Smith, used as a additional playmaker, in especial targeted.

But it was the vintage attacking Fijian flare that was the standout moment in the opening half as passes out of the tackle sliced through the English defense for the fly-half to touch down.

Feyi-Waboso expertly collected a cross-field kick by Fin Smith to take the hosts into the lead after he had been illegally challenged in the air by Ravutaumada, who was given a sin-binning following a bunker review.

England broke clear from Australia last Saturday in the final quarter through the power of their replacements that contained multiple British and Irish Lions.

A much-changed starting XV from the victory over the Wallabies did grab the next try as the prop crossed following a strong carry by Ollie Lawrence, who was returning to the national side after suffering his Achilles versus the Italians in March.

Nonetheless, after a smart line-out move was completed by the Fijian, the coach unloaded several of his bench on the 54-minute mark – including Lions players Henry Pollock and Curry.

With the match still in the balance, Fiji scrum-half the halfback lost control of the ball when reaching for the tryline to cancel out replacement George's try.

Flanker Ben Earl, who scored versus Australia, produced a spectacular game-saving stop to keep a narrow lead between the sides.

It topped off another outstanding overall display by the flanker, who received consecutive player-of-the-match awards.

Arundell's pace to chase down a grubber kick showcased exactly why England's bench is so influential.

It is full of top players and talent, which has helped secure victories in the final quarter that were lost versus the Wallabies and New Zealand last autumn.

Given the Scottish side pushed the All Blacks hard, the English team will fancy their chances of making a big statement next week.

Should they win, the substitutes will probably again be crucial.

England: M Smith; Freeman, Lawrence, Dingwall, Feyi-Waboso; F Smith, Mitchell; Genge, Cowan-Dickie, Heyes, Coles, Chessum, Pepper, Earl, Cunningham-South

Replacements: George, Baxter, Opoku-Fordjour, Itoje, T Curry, Pollock, Spencer, Arundell

Fiji: Rayasi; Ravutaumada, Ravouvou, Tuisova, Wainiqolo; Muntz, Kuruvoli; Mawi, Ikanivere, Doge, Nasilasila, Mayanavanua, Sowakula, Canakaivata, Mata

Replacements: Togiatama, Hetet, Tawake, Vocevoce, Murray, Wye, Armstrong-Ravula, Maqala

Sin-bin: Ravutaumada

Referee: Paul Williams (New Zealand)

Assistant referee: Luc Ramos (France) and Katsuki Furuse (Japan)

Television match official: Mike Adamson (Scotland)