England Claims Ninth Straight Win Against Physical Fijian Side

Quilter Nations 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 notched four second-half tries to defeat a tough Fijian team in their latest fall test match.

The victory lengthens the English team's winning run to nine games and supports their win over the Wallabies last Saturday.

England opened the scoring through Luke Cowan-Dickie before the visitors answered back with scores by Ikanivere and Muntz.

Number ten Muntz missed both conversions but slotted a penalty goal to take the visitors further clear before Feyi-Waboso crossed.

Prop Genge and the Fijian hooker then exchanged tries to ignite an exciting final forty minutes.

Replacements George and Henry Arundell, who showed his scintillating pace, finished off tries to take the hosts into a comfortable lead.

These tries came either side of Fijian halfback Kuruvoli spilling the ball when going for the tryline.

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

Borthwick's side now face New Zealand next Saturday in their toughest test theoretically this autumn.

Before this meeting, England had claimed victory in 8 of their nine games with the Fijian side – most recently winning 30-24 in the quarter-finals of the 2023 World Cup.

Their sole loss came two months prior the tournament in Europe and was a major turning point under the head coach.

With Fiji on a five-game streak – their equal best run since 1999 – the fixture was always likely to be tight.

After smooth attacking phases, number eight Chandler Cunningham-South made good ground before Cowan-Dickie forced his way over for the first try from short distance, with the Fijian's score off the back of a maul adding a quick response.

Nicknamed the flying Fijians, that was evident in defense through powerful first-half tackles in the center, with full-back Smith, deployed as a second playmaker, in particular targeted.

But it was the vintage Fijian attacking flair that was the highlight in the first forty as passes out of the tackle cut England's defence open for Muntz to touch down.

The winger sharply finished a cross-field kick by Fin Smith to take England 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 the Wallabies last Saturday in the final quarter through the impact of their replacements that contained six British and Irish Lions.

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

Nonetheless, after a smart set piece was finished by Ikanivere, Borthwick introduced five of his bench on the 54-minute mark – including Lions players Henry Pollock and Curry.

With the game still up for grabs, Fiji scrum-half Kuruvoli lost control of the ball when reaching for the tryline to negate replacement the hooker's score.

Flanker Ben Earl, who scored versus the Wallabies, produced a spectacular try-saving tackle to maintain breathing room between the teams.

It topped off another all-round impressive performance by Earl, who received consecutive man of the match honors.

Arundell's pace to chase down a grubber kick showcased exactly why the English replacements is so impactful.

It is packed with stars and quality, which has aided in wins in the final quarter that were squandered against the Wallabies and New Zealand the previous fall.

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

Should they win, the bench will probably play another key factor.

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)