The English Team Earns 9th Straight Victory Against Tough 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

England notched four tries after halftime to overcome a tough Fijian team in their second autumn international.

The victory lengthens Steve Borthwick's side's winning run to nine matches and backs up their triumph over Australia the previous weekend.

England got on the board first through Luke Cowan-Dickie before the visitors responded with scores by Ikanivere and Muntz.

Fly-half Muntz failed to convert either try but nailed a penalty to take the Fijians further clear before Feyi-Waboso crossed.

Prop Genge and Ikanivere then traded scores to begin an thrilling final forty minutes.

Substitutes George and Arundell, who showed his blistering speed, touched down to take the hosts clear.

These tries came around Fiji scrum-half Simi Kuruvoli fumbling the ball when attempting to score.

Skipper Itoje, who also came off the bench, grabbed the final try.

The English team now meet the All Blacks next Saturday in their biggest challenge on paper this fall.

Prior to this match, the English team had claimed victory in eight of their 9 games with Fiji – most lately taking a close contest in the last eight of the 2023 World Cup.

Their sole loss came two months prior the tournament in Europe and was a significant shift under Borthwick.

With Fiji on a five-game streak – their joint longest streak since the late nineties – the fixture was always expected to be hard-fought.

After slick phase play, number eight Cunningham-South made good ground before Cowan-Dickie barged over for the first try from short distance, with the Fijian's score off the back of a driving maul providing a swift reply.

Nicknamed the Flying Fijians, that was apparent in defence through monstrous opening period midfield hits, with full-back Smith, used as a additional playmaker, in particular targeted.

But it was the classic attacking Fijian flare that was the highlight in the opening half as offloads cut England's defence open for the fly-half to score.

Feyi-Waboso sharply finished a cross-field kick by Fin Smith to take the hosts into the lead after he had been illegally challenged in the air by Ravutaumada, who was awarded a sin-binning following a video review.

The English team pulled away from the Wallabies last Saturday in the last twenty minutes through the impact of their replacements that included multiple Lions tourists.

A much-changed starting lineup from the victory over the Wallabies did grab the next try as Genge crossed following a strong carry by Lawrence, who was returning to the national side after tearing his Achilles versus Italy in March.

However, after a smart line-out move was finished by the Fijian, the coach introduced five of his bench on the 54-minute mark – featuring Lions players Henry Pollock and Curry.

With the game still in the balance, Fijian number nine the halfback lost control of the ball when reaching for the goal line to negate replacement George's try.

Flanker Ben Earl, who scored against Australia, produced a stunning try-saving tackle to maintain a narrow lead between the sides.

It topped off another outstanding overall display by Earl, who picked up consecutive man of the match honors.

Arundell's pace to chase down a kick through showcased exactly why England's bench is so influential.

It is packed with top players and talent, which has helped secure victories in the final quarter that were lost versus the Wallabies and New Zealand last autumn.

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

If successful, the substitutes will probably again be crucial.

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)