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By Tom Fordyce
Chief sports writer in Kobe, Japan
Head coach Eddie Jones is convinced that because they prepare for Thursday’s match four days after fighting Tonga his reshuffled England team will deal with their short turnaround.
Only five of the team out of Sunday’s 35-3 win in their opening World Cup game are maintaining their areas.
«We have done a fair bit of homework to this turn up,» Jones told BBC Sport.
«We trialled a four-day turnaround against Japan last autumn, to guarantee the players have experience of this.»
George Ford captains the side at 10, together with Billy Vunipola chosen in eight and you will find World Cup debuts for both wingers Ruaridh McConnochie and Joe Cokanasiga plus centre Piers Francis.
Talking to the BBC’s Rugby Union Weekly podcast, Jones added:»We have looked at choice pretty carefully, seemed at the gamers who might back up and who could not back up.
«We’ve tried to work out which players require a rest. Each player is different — some players want a longer time to recover, and some are much better off when they’re in form to continue.»
However they had been laboured occasionally, appearing strong in defence but earning 14 handling mistakes england ensured a four-try bonus-point win over Tonga at the Sapporo Dome.
Requirements in the Kobe Misaki stadium are inclined to be similar to last week, the roof shut for the game here rather than a permanent construction but the humidity inside still evident to people utilized to English autumns.
The home of Top League soccer team Kobelco Steelers also as football club Vissel Kobe, the current club of former Barcelona and Spain great Andres Iniesta, has a capacity of just over 30,000, with England fans increasingly visible on the streets of the city over the last couple of days.
Jones had described facing the USA starting XV because»like facing 15 Donald Trumps» because he expects to come out»all guns blazing» but South African coach Gary Gold, who’s also coached London Irish, Newcastle and Bath as well as the Steelers, has opted for the more familiar skills of eight England established players.
Harlequins’ Paul Lasike starts at inside-centre, Saracens’ Titi Lamositele in prop and the AJ MacGinty at fly-half of Sale.
The 29-year-old MacGinty had an excellent record off the tee Sale last year, landing 83% of his shots at goal, while full-back Will Hooley is another familiar name to fans of the Premiership, the prior England under-20s man having had spells at Northampton Saints and Exeter Chiefs before falling down to Bedford Blues from the Championship.
England’s defence coach John Mitchell coached the Eagles to July 2017, helping them qualify for this particular World Cup before heading to South Africa to coach the Blue Bulls.
As England look to discover a fluency that amuses them and Jones was picking the brains of his assistant.
Jones explained:»We’ve talked to Mitch about the psychology of the team, how they approach their matches, the psychology of some of the players.
«They are definitely playing with a different sort of game into the person they had to playwith.
«I coached from the USA a fair bit with Japan and they were a far more comfortable, athletic group.
«They are now a much more pragmatic team, a group that kicks the ball a lot, with a sharp operator at MacGinty at 10, who our boys understand fairly well.»
Veteran prop Dan Cole will acquire his 91st cap to go joint-third with Jonny Wilkinson on England men’s on board listBen Youngs when he comes off the seat as 37, linking him.
Cole was made out of Jones’ team before this season but is back in his third World Cup, together with Courtney and Youngs Lawes.
Jones explained:»We had a variety of conversations, and I am really proud of the way Dan has struggled his way backagain.
«At one stage it was going to be hard for him to go to the World Cup.
«We gave him a variety of things that he had to work , he went away and worked them tremendously difficult, therefore it’s a great accomplishment for him and his loved ones.
«To get 91 caps in tight-head to your country — particularly England, which is such a scrummaging powerhouse — provides an indication of his influence on the game.»
Ford is enjoying a run of starts at fly-half, as Owen Farrell was preferred by Jones with a Manu Tuilagi/Henry Slade combination at centre at 10, having sat on the seat.
But his two starts within this tournament do not mean that he will find exactly the chance once the sterner evaluations of Argentina and France come according to his trainer.
«You need to read a whole lot into it — George is your top 10 for the USA game,» he explained.
«He just keeps growing as a player, as do a number of those players.
«That is what I am most impressed about using our staff — there is a true thirst inside the group to improve, and George is in the head of this queue pushing that forward.»
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