Johnson, Marler debut for England
7 Jun 2012
Flank Tom Johnson and prop Joe Marler will play their first Test when England face South Africa in Durban on Saturday.
There could also be a debut for utility back Jonathan Joseph, who is named among the substitutes. In changes to the run-on side from their last Six Nations Test against Ireland, Marler replaces Alex Corbisiero at loosehead and Johnson comes in for Tom Croft at blindside.
In the back division, scrumhalf Ben Youngs ousts Lee Dickson, who drops to the bench, while in the back three Mike Brown’s inclusion at fullback sees Ben Foden move to the left wing, with David Strettle out of the 22 altogether. Brown’s inclusion is a clear indication that England expect to be bombarded with tactical kicks, the Harlequins man’s aerial ability and counter-attacking ability seen as key.
Meanwhile Owen Farrell starts at flyhalf ahead of Toby Flood, the latter playing off the wood. Home town boy Brad Barritt starts at inside centre and Manu Tuilagi has had no recurrence of the injury that sidelined him until Monday, and starts at No 13.
Speaking about the debutants England head coach Stuart Lancaster said: ‘Tom and Joe have had great seasons at their clubs and have worked really hard to get this chance, both are in great form and have really impressed in training.’
He added: ‘Equally, Mike Brown has been outstanding for Harlequins. By moving Ben Foden to the wing we retain his strike power and aerial skills and can utilise not only Mike’s attacking and defensive assets we can also call on his left footed kicking game.’
England - 15 Mike Brown, 14 Chris Ashton, 13 Manusamoa Tuilagi, 12 Brad Barritt, 11 Ben Foden, 10 Owen Farrell, 9 Ben Youngs, 8 Ben Morgan, 7 Chris Robshaw (c), 6 Tom Johnson, 5 Geoff Parling, 4 Mouritz Botha, 3 Dan Cole, 2 Dylan Hartley, 1 Joe Marler.
Subs: 16 Lee Mears, 17 Paul Doran Jones, 18 Tom Palmer, 19 Phil Dowson, 20 Lee Dickson, 21 Toby Flood, 22 Jonathan Joseph
272 Comments
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7 Jun 2012, 11:54 am
@>^..^< katman(katman)-49: He has never disappointed in a green jersey
7 Jun 2012, 11:55 am
@>^..^< katman(katman)-46:
Alberts yep, great ball-carrier if you let him get up a head of steam, true. But he’s been in the top 20 missed tackles all season in super rugger – as long as you don’t make the mistake of running straight into him you’ve a chance there…
7 Jun 2012, 11:55 am
@kinlaw_62(kinlaw_62)-47: I think he was chosen for his height and howziter, but it’s not the way to beat the Boks.
7 Jun 2012, 11:55 am
eben is big but only 20 years old.. Sykes and Bressler overshadowed him in Durban, granted he was playing with a weak front row and back row supporting him but this is deep end stuff right here.
Mouritz Botha got international experience and is about same height but heavier than Kruger, Geoff Parling is approx. same height and weight as Kruger and mobile. Tom Palmer is approx same height and weight as Eben.
England will miss Lawes for both aggression and mobility and height but Vd Merwe is the heavy in the Bok pack and should have been started with Etsebeth off bench.
7 Jun 2012, 11:56 am
@chucky(chucky)-50:
Believe me, we are very, very merry Poms that Brussow has not been picked!!
7 Jun 2012, 11:57 am
@pompies2(pompies2)-53:
Well we’re not Aussies and Kiwis who can run around a lot. We’re more like you guys. We want someone to stand still so we can bash ‘em.
7 Jun 2012, 11:58 am
@kinlaw_62(kinlaw_62)-43:
Hougaardt had a bad game on Saturday, probably the only one I can remember where you can say he had a shocker.
He’s a confident player so it’ll be interesting to see how he backs up from a below par performance.
Since you’ve pointed out the Boks potential weaknesses where do you feel this England team is vulnerable?
7 Jun 2012, 11:58 am
@louis schropnel(louis shrapnel)-54: He was fighting a lonely batlle – his lock partner was clearly injured. I am not a Stormer fan, but if there is one guy I think will step up it is Etzebeth
7 Jun 2012, 11:59 am
@Sharksgirl(Sharksgirl)-35: You get two kinds of rugby players in love:
(i) Those who become meek as a lamb (as influenced by the female power)
(ii) Those who become even more neanderthalic and vicious (a newly found passion to protect their loved ones)
The Doc is a smart guy, but is he immune to either (i) or (ii)?
7 Jun 2012, 11:59 am
Very good back three for England… Habanero should have the edge over Ashton but the matchup between JPP and Foden will be very interesting…
Mike Brown is not to be underestimated… He has worked hard to force his way into recognition. He might have the edge on Kirchner.
Not worried about Barritt vs Steyn but am concerned about Tuilagi vs JdV. I suspect any front foot ball for England will be distributed wide to Tuilagi where they will target the outside channels for first contact…
Farrell is a toughie at 10 but I suspect Youngs and he can really be harried and hurt by Coetzee and Hougaard.
Front row will be a very good battle with Bismarck being the difference… Loosies are pretty even but I reckon the Bok lock debutants is where SA’s true advantage lies… Good driving mauls with strike moves from blindside wings will be the order of the day…
Close game… Hopefully the officials play inconspicuous roles but with Matinee Walsh in the middle and irish-french Rolland on the side competing for the centre of attention there could very well be some controversy…
The Boks must not lose this one… They cannot lose. Therefore I suspect they wont.
7 Jun 2012, 12:00 pm
@kinlaw_62(kinlaw_62)-52: Those stats can be very misleading. I’d rather have an Alberts who misses 30 out of the 100 he attempts than a Spies who misses 4 of the 10 he tries.
In case you need a reminder: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=47WS6qMtdsI
7 Jun 2012, 12:01 pm
@Kinlaw_62-55
Never mind Brussow. I was over the moon when they left out Kolisi..
7 Jun 2012, 12:01 pm
@wpstormerbok(wpstormerbok)-57:
We’ve lost Croft, Lawes and Tom Wood to injury so….. lineout. We rate Juandre Kruger over here having been at the Saints, very smart lineout thinker.
7 Jun 2012, 12:02 pm
@louis schropnel(louis shrapnel)-54:
What are your views on the Steve Welsh factor re- style, breakdown, interpretation, and possible rain predicted
7 Jun 2012, 12:02 pm
alliteration
7 Jun 2012, 12:02 pm
@kinlaw_62(kinlaw_62)-34: Yep I am all Green and Gold this week but I must say that is definitely one of the players I am looking forward to seeing!
7 Jun 2012, 12:03 pm
I’m not sure why some people are so certain the Boks will be unbeatable? At this stage there is a whole host of ‘unknowns’ (except the game plan) and arrogantly dispatching what by all accounts is a very disciplined, focused, well coached and well prepared team seems seems foolish. It also seems very disrespectful to opposition, who certainly have the ability to shut us up smartly. I really don’t get all the chest beating just yet?
7 Jun 2012, 12:03 pm
@louis schropnel(louis shrapnel)-54: Rubbish. Don’t just post stuff in the hope that we’ll believe it. I checked their stats. Palmer is 116kg, and Etzebeth is 123kg. That’s hardly “approximately the same”.
7 Jun 2012, 12:04 pm
@>^..^< katman(katman)-61:
Maybe we’ll see. We’d like to get Alberts defending in space, or Spies defending anywhere! Do you remember the old film ‘Jason and the Argonauts’? Spies always reminds me of the huge bronze giant in that…
7 Jun 2012, 12:04 pm
@PaulLondon(PaulLondon)-62: How come YOU guys see it, yet many people right here in SA don’t?
7 Jun 2012, 12:04 pm
@chucky(chucky)-45:
Frans Steyn often gets his kicks charged down when operating at 1st receiver so if he shows up there I hope the plan is to run because if he passes it will be a skip and if England have their homework they’ll be looking out for that.
On Keegan Daniels I agree, he’s small but gets through a lot of work and always running on the ball carrier’s shoulder.
Spies has more bulk but he has a small heart and as soon as someone graces his ankles he goes to ground so any size advantage we had with him there is nullified.
Coetzee has made name as a difficult customer with ball in hand so it will be interesting to see how he operates should we employ the kick game which will require a greater defensive effort then what he’s used to at the Sharks.
7 Jun 2012, 12:05 pm
@Sharksgirl(Sharksgirl)-66:
Always nice to have balance eh?
7 Jun 2012, 12:06 pm
Maybe Bismarck can have a “quiet” word to Hartley regarding his tendency for gnashing teeth and biting…
7 Jun 2012, 12:06 pm
@FFF(FFF)-64: What will old Walsh see as ‘daylight’ in the match…..
7 Jun 2012, 12:06 pm
@FFF(FFF)-64: Walsh will likely blow SH style which will favor Boks.. he knows us we know him.. if anything Walsh will be a Bok advantage and not an England one.
Plus his heart will favor Boks.. they should have picked a truly impartial ref like somebody from France or Japan for this one.
7 Jun 2012, 12:06 pm
@Heavens Game(Heavens Game)-60: I think the compariso between fullback is inaccurate. This weekend the fulllbacks will be up against their opposing flyhalves. Makes a difference when looking at it that way. With Frans in the midfield, the kicking options have increased in that kicking agles will change as well. Expect Brown to get a bit of a runaround in addition to fielding the up-and-unders.
7 Jun 2012, 12:07 pm
@The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged as dog food(The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged as dog food)-73:
Tell me ??????
7 Jun 2012, 12:08 pm
Maybe Bismarck can have a “quiet” word to Hartley regarding his tendency for gnashing teeth and biting…
7 Jun 2012, 12:11 pm
@pompies2(pompies2)-76: @pompies2(pompies2)-76: I think comparison between FBs wrt their respective contributions to their teams is just fine. Brown may have more value for England than Kirchner to the Boks.
7 Jun 2012, 12:11 pm
@FFF(FFF)-76: I wish I knew…..he should do the southern hemisphere thing…..BUT, as we all know, when the eyes of the world are on Deuce Bigalow, he tends to forget everything that has come before, and focuses entirely on blowing a game in the manner which gets him the most ‘face time’ on the telly.
7 Jun 2012, 12:11 pm
@Bokhoring(Bokhoring)-48:
also to ‘unleash the doodpoes’ *(copyright gunther)
at about minute 60
7 Jun 2012, 12:12 pm
@louis schropnel(louis shrapnel)-74:
He used to be a complete Dog and thought he had celebrity status with the whistle, and displayed complete and total bias at times (Cough Cough Mark Lawrence)………..but he seems to have grown up, and intern is growing on me
7 Jun 2012, 12:12 pm
@wpstormerbok(wpstormerbok)-71: Agreed. But surprisingly not many kicks were been made at training even with Frans at 10.
Boks look to want to run hard and break down the Poms and not so much of the 50/50 up in the air as we all expect.
Hopefully not like Griesel and co in Babyboks defeat where they were playing like dumb programmed robots kicking eeven when it clearly wasnt on
7 Jun 2012, 12:13 pm
@The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged as dog food(The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged as dog food)-79:
Mark Lawrence is his apprentice
7 Jun 2012, 12:15 pm
@Heavens Game(Heavens Game)-77:
i hope ashton gets pk’d all game long.
7 Jun 2012, 12:16 pm
@willievz(willievz)-59:
clearly not to 1. in my opinion. Since his marriage he has become quite the teddy bear 
Except against the Stormers, maybe Plum threatened to lock away his wife if he didn’t perform in that game
7 Jun 2012, 12:16 pm
@kinlaw_62(kinlaw_62)-69: I’m happy for your confidence and bravado. It’s good to feel that way about your chances. Keeps you young. As long as you don’t get all morbid and depro afterwards, then life is peachy.
7 Jun 2012, 12:17 pm
@Heavens Game(Heavens Game)-78: Questionable. They are even at best, with Kirchner slightly egding it at times, but i suppose being a Shark, you inclined to choose Brown with the aim of discrediting Kirchner.
7 Jun 2012, 12:19 pm
@>^..^< katman(katman)-86:
It must be nice for you to at last be in a position to support a team who has at least a 50% chance to win a match
7 Jun 2012, 12:21 pm
@The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged as dog food(The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged as dog food)-67: You are right… However I suspect that your “close-game” sentiments may come more from “northern” Heyneke “cabal” negativity rather than any appreciation of, or respect for, the ability of the England players or management…
Nevertheless this England side were a couple of better decisions, and a little bit of luck away from arriving on these shores as Grand Slam winning 6N champs…
They are a good, unassuming side with a very good attitude… No hype all hard work… They will not lie down. But then again neither will Der Kaiser’s Boks.
7 Jun 2012, 12:22 pm
@chucky(chucky)-82:
That’s good to hear as we’ve won so many games playing with scraps of possession so if the plan is to hold onto the ball longer then it’s good news.
Hopefully we won’t see too many human centipedes or 20 meter drives followed by an up n under.
7 Jun 2012, 12:22 pm
@Robzim(Robzim)-88: The Currie Cup was not that long ago
7 Jun 2012, 12:24 pm
@houston, we have a problem…(i_love_u_bakkiesbotha)-85: One excellent PK will do nicely…lol Maybe Doodpoes can issue when he comes on in the 2nd half after sitting on him first. Habanero can teach him a couple of lessons before that…
7 Jun 2012, 12:24 pm
@kinlaw_62(kinlaw_62)-72: Well if Johnny was still part of your team that would have made it 2 players I would have loved to meet. I have always had what can only be termed as a crush on Mr Wilkinson
.
Anyway I hope the Boks win but all the best to your team!
7 Jun 2012, 12:25 pm
@FFF(FFF)-83: Rather Steve than some of the others, but he honestly does have a tendency to draw attention to himself in internationals (think its the viewer numbers). I just hope our lot are preparing for both eventualities. There is nothing worse than expecting a ‘certain’ interpretation(and preparing for it), then suddenly realizing it ain’t gonna happen, and having no contingency plan in place. Jean will just have to monitor carefully. (thankfully he is an outspoken captain and Steve (bless his heart) is a ref always keen to chat.)
7 Jun 2012, 12:25 pm
wpstormerbok – Your comment about the Ozzie’s confidence being shot after the Scotish defefeat, is in my opinion wrong. The Ozzies have always had the capability to pick themselves and take a big scalp in the very next game after a huge defeat!!!
They won the 3N last year, knocked us out of the RWC(Get over it)!!
7 Jun 2012, 12:27 pm
There will be a lot of sparing in the first test, therefore I predict a close finish. Boks to edge it. Second and third will be a different story. Tsunami.
7 Jun 2012, 12:28 pm
@pompies2(pompies2)-88: Not at all… I do not discredit Kirchner because he is a Bull… Rather I credit Brown because he has been in excellent form for Quins and has displaced former England darling at fullback, Foden. A subtle difference, see? Apologies if the difference was maybe a little too subtle for the likes of you to pick up…
7 Jun 2012, 12:30 pm
@The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged as dog food(The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged as dog food)-95:
The truth is there was always a heavy anti-saffa undercurrent with IRB refs since readmission
Paddy, Dickenson, Bryce, Walsh……and every Irish ref to ever don the whistle, although Bryce’s last performance was a bit of a swansong in terms of complete over exposure, so I think that a lot of refs wont risk “blowing” there ratings with the “all eyes on me ”whilst reffing SA games……at least not for a while tho
7 Jun 2012, 12:31 pm
@The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged as dog food(The Sharks rugby pedigree is packaged as dog food)-95:
And thank God its not Smitty…..cause we all know about their relations
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