Simon Middleton has named his match day 23 to face New Zealand in the second game of the Old Mutual Wealth Series at the Twickenham Stoop on Saturday 19 November, KO 12pm, broadcast live on EnglandRugby.com and BBC 5 Live Sports Extra.
Katy Mclean and Emily Scarratt will start to earn their 80th and 60th caps respectively, while Rochelle Clark will look to come off the bench for her 116th international appearance to become the world’s most capped women’s player.
The Red Roses are two from two so far this autumn having beaten France 10-5 in the series opener on 9 November before following up with a gritty 10-12 win over Ireland at University College Dublin on Sunday.
However they face a tougher challenge on Saturday when they take on the world’s number one side, fresh from a convincing 2-0 series win against Australia.
Head Coach Simon Middleton said: “This series is about building on our performances and developing as a squad. We expect a tough Test against the Black Ferns, as the world’s number one side.
“We have two tough games under our belts where we have had the opportunity to test our resilience and the strength and depth of our squad. We look forward to bringing Emily Scarratt and Lydia Thompson back into the starting 15 and having the support of a home crowd. We encourage anyone coming down to Twickenham on Saturday to pop over to the Stoop for 12pm to get behind the Red Roses.”
The sides have met just once this World Cup cycle, in July 2015 when the Black Ferns came away with a 26-7 victory.
The final Test of the Old Mutual Wealth Series sees the Red Roses take on Canada on 26 November at Twickenham, KO 5.05pm.
England match-day 23 against New Zealand
15 Danielle Waterman (Bristol, 62 caps)
14 Lydia Thompson (Worcester Valkyries, 25 caps)
13 Emily Scarratt (Lichfield, 59 caps)
12 Rachael Burford (Aylesford Bulls, 58 caps)
11 Fiona Pocock (Aylesford Bulls, 31 caps)
10 Katy Mclean (Darlington Mowden Park Sharks, 79 caps)
9 Natasha Hunt (Lichfield, 31 caps)
1 Vickii Cornborough (Aylesford Bulls, 19 caps)
2 Amy Cokayne (Lichfield, 18 caps)
3 Laura Keates (Worcester Valkyries, 54 caps)
4 Tamara Taylor (Darlington Mowden Park Sharks, 96 caps)
5 Harriet Millar-Mills (Lichfield, 36 caps)
6 Izzy Noel-Smith (Bristol, 22 caps)
7 Marlie Packer (Bristol, 38 caps)
8 Sarah Hunter (Bristol, 83 caps) (c)
16 Emma Croker (Richmond, 63 caps)
17 Rochelle Clark (Worcester Valkyries, 115 caps)
18 Justine Lucas (Lichfield, 13 caps)
19 Poppy Cleall (Bristol, 5 caps)
20 Vicky Fleetwood (Saracens, 53 caps)
21 La Toya Mason (Darlington Mowden Park Sharks, 58 caps)
22 Emily Scott (Saracens, 14 caps)
23 Claire Allan (Saracens, 34 caps)
Old Mutual Wealth Series
England 10 – 5 France
Wednesday 9 November
Twickenham Stoop
England v New Zealand, Saturday 19 November
Twickenham Stoop, KO 12pm
Tickets available here
England v Canada, Saturday 26 November
Twickenham, KO 5.05pm
FREE entry after the conclusion of the men’s game
Report courtesy of England Rugby
