Carter in for Kiwis as Evans fails test
Evans was included in the All Blacks’ starting line-up by head coach Graham Henry, but a hamstring injury sustained during training on Wednesday reduced his chances of making the match to just 50-50.
Carter was placed on standby by Henry and will now start against the world champions with Leon MacDonald filling the vacancy on the substitutes’ bench.
The exclusion of Carter, who is rated the best fly-half in the game by some margin, led to suggestions the All Blacks viewed their forthcoming Tests against France as the main attraction of their European tour.
But his presence at Twickenham makes New Zealand’s team look close to their strongest possible line-up.
Meanwhile Keven Mealamu predicts New Zealand will face another test of character against England on Sunday and may have to settle for victory by the narrowest of margins.
The All Blacks escaped with a 23-19 win at Twickenham last season after surviving three second-half sin-binnings and a ferocious late onslaught from England.
Mealamu scored a try that day and expects another bruising contest, even though England are in disarray following a run of five straight defeats.
“When you have your backs to the wall that’s when you show your character and the spirit in the side. We definitely showed our character last season,” said the Auckland hooker.
“Last season was the first time we had beaten England at Twickenham for six years. You always take an away win over England, whether it’s by one point or 15.
“We do love to play at Twickenham — it’s games like these that the guys back home would love to be in so we really appreciate it.
“It’s never easy when you play England away — we’ve never won comfortably there and it’s going to be another tight game. A one-point victory is as big as any other win.”
In true England tradition, last November’s clash saw Andy Robinson’s side secure enough possession to win the game several times over only to see it squandered by a lack of penetration behind the scrum.
They will field another juggernaut pack which is sure to gain at least parity in the forward battle and Mealamu revealed New Zealand will seek to counter their opponents’ bulk with a more cerebral approach.
“England have quite a few forwards who were there last year so they’ll put up another big fight,” he said.
“We’re expecting the same sort of thing this time around. You know that when you come up against an England pack it will be very difficult and this year is no different.
“We’re not the biggest side in the world so technique is something we’ve had to concentrate on.
“We pride ourselves on that as a team — we make sure the basics are done right. We’ve been working on our lineout quite a bit since the Tri-Nations.
“We still have to be physical even though we’re smaller than them. But we have to be smart and use our heads. We’re not going to run into every big bloke we see.”
Mealamu will pack down opposite Leicester hardman George Chuter who revealed earlier this week his party trick at school was to smash himself over the head with a cricket bat — without flinching.
Chuter has only won two caps but his aggression ensures he will not take a backwards step against New Zealand and Mealamu expects him to honour the tradition of rugged English hookers.
“I’ve been trying to do a bit of homework on George by watching his games at Leicester. He looks tough — most England hookers you come up against are hard,” he said.
“I’ll have my work cut out for me. He’s half the size of Steve Thompson but sometimes size doesn’t matter.
“When you’re small you have to use all of the technique you have. When you scrum against an England pack you have to be at your best.”
CONNECT WITH US TODAY
Be the first to know the latest news and updates
