Category: Rugby Union

• England face Japan and former head coach on Sunday
• Captain says under-fire Jones ‘did brilliant things’ for side

Jamie George expects England supporters to show Eddie Jones the respect he deserves when he makes his first return to Twickenham as an international coach on Sunday.

Jones, who is now with Japan, won three Six Nations titles as England head coach, including the 2016 grand slam, and guided them to the 2019 World Cup final during his seven-year tenure. He won 59 of his 81 Tests, making him the England coach with the highest winning percentage.

Eddie Jones’ side present a thankless task but England still have plenty to play for - not least to reboot the regime

Much has happened since England and Eddie Jones last crossed samurai swords in a sweltering Tokyo at the end of June. England have not had another Test match victory in the intervening 155 days and red rose morale has taken a series of hits. Five consecutive losses is in danger of prompting confidence and momentum to drift away among players and fans alike.

Japan, coincidentally, have also endured a lean spell since conceding 52 points to England. Italy and Fiji topped 40 points against them, a reshuffled France side rattled up 52 and New Zealand scored 64 in Yokohama. Last week’s 36-20 win over Uruguay delivered some respite, but Jones’s second coming as Japanese head coach is proving a slow burn.

After conceding 12 tries in three games, the defence will be under scrutiny and they need to stop the opposition scoring

The message within the England camp should be loud and clear this weekend: we are not conceding any tries against Japan. As much as Eddie Jones will be revelling in coming back to Twickenham, in trying to exploit whatever insecurities England have on the back of five straight defeats, this is not a Japan side that will harbour genuine hopes of an upset. The target for England, then, after an autumn of defensive frailties, should be to tighten up. To make sure that even if the result is not in doubt, they defend their line with all they’ve got.

It can be difficult when the drop-off is so pronounced having faced the back-to-back world champions in South Africa. Japan are historically a side who like to move the ball and I don’t expect that to change but England faced the same team in Tokyo over the summer in their first match of that tour and put 50 points on them despite stifling humidity. More than targeting a similar number of points, or a number of tries, I would challenge England to keep Japan tryless.

• Tom Curry was stood down for 12 days after Australia loss
• ‘He’s gone through protocols, independent consultations’

The England head coach, Steve ­Borthwick, has defended his ­decision to pick Tom Curry for Sunday’s match against Japan two weeks after he sustained a second head injury inside two months, despite criticism from concussion campaigners.

Curry was knocked ­unconscious during England’s defeat by ­Australia earlier this month after a nasty ­collision with Rob Valetini and ­subjected to the 12-day stand-down period in line with World Rugby’s return-to-play protocols.

• Forward, 20, likely to start on the bench
• England looking for first win of autumn

The rookie prop Asher Opoku-Fordjour is in line for an England debut against Japan on Sunday, with Steve Borthwick expected to hand the 20-year-old a place on the bench.

Opoku-Fordjour was only called into Borthwick’s squad when Joe Marler announced his international retirement after the defeat by New Zealand earlier this month but caught the eye in last week’s England A victory over Australia at the Stoop. Prior to that match, Borthwick said, “I have been really positive about what I’ve seen from Asher,” and the Guardian understands that Opoku-Fordjour is in the frame for a place among the replacements on Sunday as Eddie Jones locks horns with his former employers at Twickenham for the first time.