Fin Baxter handed first England start in New Zealand rematch

The 22-year-old prop replaces Joe Marler after winning first cap as a replacement in the first Test.

FIN BAXTER WILL make his first start for England in the second Test against New Zealand on Saturday.

The 22-year-old Harlequins prop, who won his first cap off the bench in the 16-15 first Test defeat in Dunedin, again replaces his clubmate Joe Marler who has been ruled out with a foot injury.

Bevan Rodd comes onto the bench in the only other change to the squad for Auckland.

By contrast, fellow prop Dan Cole will win his 115th cap from the bench at Eden Park to become England’s second most-capped men’s player behind Ben Youngs (127).

England coach Steve Borthwick paid tribute to Cole, who will move ahead of Jason Leonard.

“Dan has shown nothing but dedication and determination throughout his career, and reaching this milestone is a remarkable feat,” he said.

“He is a superb rugby player, a wonderful role model and we all look forward to sharing a memorable day with him on Saturday.

“Eden Park is a stadium packed with history and with memories of great rugby encounters.

“New Zealand has a formidable record at this venue, but with that comes the pressure of expectation. It will be interesting to see how New Zealand manages that expectation in front of a full house.”

Scrum-half Finlay Christie is the only new face in the New Zealand starting line-up, replacing the injured TJ Perenara, with the uncapped Cortez Ratima taking his place on the bench.

New Zealand:

15. Stephen Perofeta

14. Sevu Reece

13. Rieko Ioane

12. Jordie Barrett

11. Mark Tele’a

10. Damian McKenzie

9. Finlay Christie

1. Ethan De Groot

2. Codie Taylor

3. Tyrel Lomax

4. Scott Barrett (capt)

5. Patrick Tuipulotu

6. Samipeni Finau

7. Dalton Papali’i

8. Ardie Savea

Replacements:

16. Asafo Aumua
17. Ofa Tu’ungafasi
18. Fletcher Newell
19. Tupou Vaa’i
20. Luke Jacobson
21. Cortez Ratima
22. Anton Lienert-Brown
23. Beauden Barrett

England:

15. George Furbank

14. Immanuel Feyi-Waboso

13. Henry Slade

12. Ollie Lawrence

11. Tommy Freeman

10. Marcus Smith

9. Alex Mitchell

1. Fin Baxter

2. Jamie George (capt)

3. Will Stuart

4. Maro Itoje

5. George Martin

6. Chandler Cunningham-South

7. Sam Underhill

8. Ben Earl

Replacements:

16. Theo Dan
17. Bevan Rodd
18. Dan Cole
19. Alex Coles
20. Tom Curry
21. Ben Spencer
22. Fin Smith
23. Ollie Sleightholme

Fin Baxter handed first England start in New Zealand rematch

New Zealand:

England:

Leave a commentcancel