ENGLAND’S NEW TEST-MATCH ANIMALS EMERGE IN BRILLIANT VICTORY OVER ARGENTINA
Test match animals are what Steve Borthwick was hoping to unearth over this two-Test series in Argentina and, at the gladiatorial Estadio Uno in La Plata, England’s warriors could not have done more to answer their head coach’s rallying cry, putting Los Pumas to the sword in ruthless fashion.
Shorn of 13 players to the British and Irish Lions tour and sundry others to injury, this was an English victory built on courage and conviction. All week, Borthwick had labelled his charges as underdogs against a Pumas side which conquered the Lions in Dublin two weeks ago. Whether they were – Argentina themselves had rested a few of their big guns, Mateo Carreras and Juan Cruz Mallía among others – is now moot; England summoned an underdog spirit to take a one-match lead in the series.
England’s defensive graft, particularly in the first half, almost beggared belief. The visitors were reduced to 14 players and then 13 for quick-fire sin-bins to Alex Coles and Seb Atkinson – the former for a head-on-head tackle and the latter, on debut, for an accumulation of penalties – but managed to hold Argentina up over their try line three times. England even managed to take a narrow 3-0 lead into half-time thanks to a George Ford dropped goal. On the occasion of his 100th cap, with Frank Lampard, Joe Root and even Tony Blair sending messages of congratulations, Ford was immense.
So, too, was his co-captain, Jamie George. That pair, along with Fin Baxter, Joe Heyes and Tom Willis, set a physical and emotional tone for England against a partisan crowd whose support was such that at several times in the match the vertiginous stands in La Plata were physically shaking.
But it was England, and not Argentina, who brought the quakes. Just after half-time, in a savage seven-minute burst, England scored three tries and 19 unanswered points. Tom Roebuck crossed twice with Freddie Steward sandwiched in between as the visitors accrued an unassailable lead. Argentina mounted a comeback of sorts, and scored two incredibly stylish tries through Pablo Matera and Pedro Rubiolo, but the damage had already been done. Ford added further penalties and a late Cadan Murley try put the cherry on the cake.
This handsome victory makes it 103 points for and 26 against for England in their past two capped matches and Borthwick will be delighted at how his green team stepped up from Premiership to Test level, ramping up the physicality and navigating the extra caginess. Watching this, those on the Lions tour may well be fretting that their place with England is under threat.
It became quickly clear – when Baxter marmalised both opposite number Mayco Vivas and Matera, as well as Rodrigo Isgró levelling Henry Slade – that this was not a match for frills, but for hard-nosed, old-fashioned fight. With some of the physicality, the souls of the spectators shook just as much as the stanchions.
England’s resolve was unquestionable and in the first half it was their heart which kept them alive when their heads went walkabout. Coles can have no complaints about his yellow card for an early head-on-head collision with Facundo Isa and neither can Atkinson after England’s discipline eroded. But it was George, Heyes, Sam Underhill, Willis and Atkinson – pre-binning – who were all involved in the scrambled, last-ditch heroics. England will be disgruntled they were ever in that position but once they were they were magnificent.
After England had clung on, Ford started to kick. The fly-half steered a purposeful attack after which he dropped a goal to give the visitors the lead. Déjà vu from 2023 when Ford’s dropped-goal masterclass downed Argentina in the World Cup pool stage, once again with 14 players.
Ford missed another attempt on the stroke of half-time but England still entered the interval with the slenderest of leads, which was deserved if nothing for the depth of their grit and the beef of their graft.
Then came the salvo. England fired shots left, right and centre with Steward providing the scoring pass for Roebuck’s first try, before the full-back got on the end of a delightful end-over-end-ball from Ford.
Roebuck crossed again after further neat interplay between Ford, Steward, Atkinson and his fellow debutant, Will Muir.
Just as it looked as though things might deteriorate for the Pumas, however, there was a response. A sumptuous offload from Santiago Cordero sent Matera over before Juan Martín González, Santiago Carreras – at fly-half rather than full-back as against the Lions – Isgró, and Justo Piccardo intertwined elegantly for Rubiolo’s score.
But, with the home crowd sensing a dramatic comeback, England rallied. “Silence, please,” pleaded the stadium announcer as Ford lined up his two late penalties but there was little chance of that. Untroubled, England’s centurion kicked those six points off the tee, Murley crossed, and England’s Test series record against Argentina – they have never lost one – is now guaranteed to remain intact. Borthwick, who knows all about the difficulties of winning in Argentina having lost here as captain of England in 2009, has found some Test match animals, alright.
Match details
Scoring sequence: 0-3 Ford drop, 0-8 Roebuck try, 0-13 Steward try, 0-15 Ford con, 0-20 Roebuck try, 0-22 Ford con, 5-22 Matera try, 10-22 Rubiolo try, 12-22 Carreras con, 12-25 Ford pen, 12-28 Ford pen, 12-33 Murley try, 12-35 Ford con.
Argentina XV: B Elizalde (Roger 61); R Isgró, L Cinti, J Piccardo, S Cordero (Moroni 61); S Carreras, G Bertranou (Benítez Cruz 49); M Vivas (Gallo 45), J Montoya (capt) (Bernasconi 71), P Delgado (Coria Marchetti 45), L Paulos (Grondona 54), P Rubiolo, P Matera, JM González, F Isa (Moro 49).
England XV: F Steward; T Roebuck, H Slade, S Atkinson (Murley 64), W Muir (Atkinson 70); G Ford (co-capt), B Spencer (Van Poortvliet 56); F Baxter (Rodd 56), J George (co-capt) (Dan 75), J Heyes (Opoku-Fordjour 56), C Ewels (Cunningham-South 49, Ewels 63), A Coles, B Curry (Cunningham-South 76), S Underhill (Pepper 61), T Willis (Dombrandt 61).
Yellow card: Coles 15, Atkinson 21
Referee: A Gardner
10:51 PM BST
Our very own Charlie Morgan on X
10:50 PM BST
Next weekend
England go 1-0 up and take that lead to the Estadio San Juan del Bicentenario in San Juan at the same time next week.
10:49 PM BST
The thoughts of England’s newest centurion, George Ford
“We just wanted to perform well and win tonight. It is all about the team as always. We understand how difficult it is here in Argentina so it is a great win for us. We were under pressure in the first half; we gave away too many penalties and could not get out of our half.
“We had to make sure second half we got out of our half and create some try-scoring opportunities, which we did early in the second half. We have to back it up next week and we know Argentina will come back at us. Another challenge that we will look forward to.”
10:45 PM BST
The thoughts of Argentina captain Julian Montoya
“In the first half we had a lot of opportunities that we did not score points from. Then the first five minutes of the second half we were very poor so we need to look at ourselves and be better. Congratulations to the debutants and we need to be ready for next weekend. Credit to England as they played well. We cannot have those gaps where we concede very easy points.”
10:39 PM BST
Today’s international fixtures
Maori All Blacks 26-29 Scotland
Japan 24-19 Wales
New Zealand 31-27 France
Waratahs 10-21 British and Irish Lions
South Africa 42-24 Italy
Georgia 5-34 Ireland
Argentina 12-35 England
10:38 PM BST
FT stats
Possession: Argentina 59%-41% England
Carries: 149-99
Tackles made: 102-203
Tackles missed: 28-22
Penalties conceded: 6-6
Yellow cards: 0-2
Turnovers won: 5-6
Turnovers lost: 21-14
Line breaks: 6-4
10:35 PM BST
Full time
Roebuck has been named man of the match.
The final whistle goes and England have completed a comprehensive and brilliant victory over Argentina. Absolutely fantastic from England.
10:29 PM BST
TRY! Murley adds England’s fourth
That caps off a magnificent night for England! Inside the Argentina 22, England move the ball wide to the left, where Murley gets around Isgro and dummies a pass out to his left, fooling Carreras. Isgro just about gets Murley down to the ground but Murley is not held so he can get up and score. Ford is once again fantastic from the tee, this time from the touchline, and England lead by 23 points. England have been fantastic tonight.
10:28 PM BST
75 mins: Argentina 12 England 28
England have a scrum just outside the Argentina 22 and dominate, earning themselves a penalty advantage....
10:27 PM BST
74 mins: Argentina 12 England 28
The home crowd are so quiet now as they know the game is gone for their side. You could hear a pin drop currently, which is such a credit to England; resilient defence in the first half, brilliant attack in the second.
10:25 PM BST
72 mins: Argentina 12 England 28
England win the lineout and set the maul. It rolls towards the Argentina line but goes down. Referee Angus Garnder believes it is down by England and Argentina are awarded the scrum.
10:24 PM BST
71 mins: Argentina 12 England 28
England are in possession inside the Argentina 22 and have a penalty advantage as the hosts are caught offside. Nothing comes from it so we go back for the offside by Piccardo.
England are going to go to the corner instead of going for goal.
That is an absolutely phenomenal 50:22 from Van Poortvliet off the restart. That, with Ford’s two penalties, will surely see England home from here. Argentina need three scores in 10 minutes.
And it is another penalty to England as I type.
10:23 PM BST
70 mins: Argentina 12 England 28
Van Poortvliet kicks from just outside his 22 and it flies miles, bouncing inside the Argentina 22 and into touch for a sublime 50-22.
10:22 PM BST
PENALTY ENGLAND!
Sublime yet again from Ford from around 45 metres out. England now have a three-score lead.
10:21 PM BST
68 mins: Argentina 12 England 25
Isgro is penalised for a no-arms tackle on George just inside the Argentine half. George is in some pain and receiving some treatment after that tackle. I thought the TMO might step in to suggest that it could be a yellow card but it remains just a penalty.
George is back on his feet and England are going for goal once more...
10:15 PM BST
PENALTY ENGLAND!
Ford’s sublime 100th cap continues as he nails the kick. I will say it again; how is this man not on the Lions tour?
10:14 PM BST
63 mins: Argentina 12 England 22
England are given a penalty on the Argentine 10-metre line as Piccardo plays the nine. Ford is going to go for goal. Sensible call...
10:12 PM BST
62 mins: Argentina 12 England 22
We had just three points in the first half but have had 31 in the first 20 minutes of the second half.
10:11 PM BST
61 mins: Argentina 12 England 22
Willis has come off and is replaced by Dombrandt. Pepper is on for his debut for Underhill as England utilise their six-two split on the bench.
10:09 PM BST
TRY! Rubiolo finishes off terrific Argentine move
That is a sublime try! They have it on halfway and come down the blindside. There is not much space but a series of sublime offloads sends Gonzalez sprinting down the touchline towards the line. He cuts inside and is not selfish, instead popping a pass up to Rubiolo, who scores. Carreras’ conversion is successful and England’s lead is cut to 10.
England have just gone off the boil and Argentina have taken full advantage. The crowd are starting to become more involved - the stands are literally bouncing again - and we have a game back on.
10:06 PM BST
57 mins: Argentina 5 England 22
Argentina’s replacement loosehead prop Gallo makes a break from inside his own half and makes great progress, showing good speed to get to the fringes of the England 22. They shift it wide to the right but knock on, allowing Ford to clear a long way down the field.
10:05 PM BST
56 mins: Argentina 5 England 22
England are ringing the changes as Rodd, Opoku-Fordjour and van Poortvliet are all on for Baxter, Heyes and Spencer.
10:02 PM BST
TRY! Matera gets one back for Argentina
The hosts have their first of the night but will it stand as they need to check numerous aspects of that try? Argentina break down the right wing and Elizalde’s offload outside to Isgro looked forward. Isgro then puts a chip kick ahead and Argentina manage to regather as the ball went loose. From deep inside the England 22, a crossfield kick is sent to the far left and Cordero catches. It looks like he will be bundled into touch but just before he goes into touch, he gets the offload off to Matera, who scores. The try stands and I cannot quite believe they have not checked the whole phase more thoroughly. Carreras drags his conversion wide of the left post.
09:58 PM BST
50 mins: Argentina 0 England 22
Ewels looks like he may have dislocated his finger so Cunningham-South is on for him. Referee Angus Garnder saw the dislocated finger and immediately looked away!
09:55 PM BST
TRY! Roebuck doubles up as England on fire
England are playing so, so well in this second half and are destroying Argentina. From a lineout not far outside the Argentina 22, Atkinson times his pass out the back to Ford to perfection and a series of neat offloads results in Roebuck being brought down not far shy of the line. After a few pick-and-goes, Heyes spots Roebuck in space down the blindside right on the right touchline and the Sale winger dots down right in the corner. Ford nails the touchline conversion and England are purring.
The opening nine minutes of this second half have been scarcely believable. England have been absolutely magnificent, scoring three tries - two for Roebuck and another for Steward - and have virtually put the game to bed. The crowd, once they had finished whistling, looked stunned.
09:52 PM BST
TRY! Steward extends England’s lead
The visitors had a penalty advantage but they do not need it. Argentina are caught offside and, with a penalty advantage in hand deep inside the Argentina 22, Ford whips a sensational, flat pass right into the hands of Steward, who goes over untouched from just a few metres out. Ford gets the easiest of conversions and England’s lead is up t0 15 points. Why is Ford not on the Lions tour? Beyond me why he is not.
09:51 PM BST
45 mins: Argentina 0 England 8
What a scrum from England! After a knock-on by England near the Argentina 10-metre line, the shove by the England pack is superb and they win the penalty. Ford belts it right into the corner and this is another great attacking opportunity for England.
09:47 PM BST
TRY! Roebuck gives England perfect start to second half
The first try of the match goes England’s way and what a perfect start to the second half. Ford executes a terrific, rugby league-style flat pass to Steward, who in turn finds Roebuck on the right touchline. He powers through a couple of tackles and manages to dot down, despite numerous Argentina defenders trying to hold him up. Ford cannot land the conversion but England now lead by eight points. Clinical from England.
An absolutely woeful, lackadaisical start to the half from Argentina and England have taken full advantage. Tom Roebuck with the finish and in a low-scoring match these moments are always significant.
09:47 PM BST
41 mins: Argentina 0 England 3
Big mistake from Argentina right at the start of the second half as they kick straight into touch despite passing the ball back into their 22, gifting England a lineout in a great attacking position.
09:46 PM BST
Second half
We are back under way in La Plata. Steve Borthwick will want to see more ball-in-hand from his side but will have been happy with the defensive resilience his side have shown.
09:40 PM BST
HT stats
Possession: Argentina 59%-41% England
Tackles made: 48-124
Tackles missed: 15-13
Penalties conceded: 1-6
Yellow cards: 0-2
Turnovers won: 1-3
Turnovers lost: 11-5
Line breaks: 2-0
09:36 PM BST
Today’s international fixtures
Maori All Blacks 26-29 Scotland
Japan 24-19 Wales
New Zealand 31-27 France
Waratahs 10-21 British and Irish Lions
South Africa 42-24 Italy
Georgia 5-34 Ireland
Argentina 0-3 England HT
09:31 PM BST
Half time
With the clock about to go into the red, Ford goes for a drop goal from halfway after a goal-line drop-out from Argentina but he cannot land it.
That is it from the first half and England lead 3-0 at the break. England’s defence was big in the first half, holding Argentina up three times. Argentina will be wondering how on earth they did not score a single point in that first half considering all the entries into the England 22.
09:27 PM BST
37 mins: Argentina 0 England 3
Bertranou puts a cheeky little chip ahead from halfway that Isgro catches. He powers through the tackle of Steward and, as he approaches the England 22, tries to find Matera but the pass is loose and rolls into touch.
09:24 PM BST
35 mins: Argentina 0 England 3
We have said this a few times tonight already but Argentina are once more in possession inside the England 22 but a double tackle from Baxter and Heyes forces a knock-on from Vivas.
09:23 PM BST
34 mins: Argentina 0 England 3
Once again England’s defence steps up as the ball is deemed out at a ruck and England pounce. Big defence from England in this first half.
England are now back up to 15 men.
09:21 PM BST
33 mins: Argentina 0 England 3
Isgro bursts through a few England tackles and then offloads to Isa to take Argentina into England’s 22. The visitors’ defence needs to step up again as Argentina are deep inside the 22.
09:18 PM BST
29 mins: Argentina 0 England 3
England, for one of the first times today, are attacking inside the Argentina 22. They come down the left but a knock-on from Roebuck just over five metres from the line ends England’s move.
09:16 PM BST
27 mins: Argentina 0 England 3
After an Argentinian knock-on just outside the England 22, the visitors then win the scrum penalty. Considering how much possession Argentina have had, especially inside England’s 22, England will be happy with where they are at.
09:14 PM BST
25 mins: Argentina 0 England 3
Coles has returned from his yellow card so England now have 14 men.
09:11 PM BST
22 mins: Argentina 0 England 3
From a lineout inside the England 22, Piccardo then carries hard and is brought down just shy of the line. From the next carry though Argentina are held up for the third time in this half!
England’s indiscipline is killing them here but what is saving them is some utterly outstanding tryline defence; Argentina have been held up over the line three times already, with co-captain Jamie George at the heart of two of them.
09:09 PM BST
21 mins: Argentina 0 England 3
Coles’ yellow card will remain a yellow.
England are penalised for offside on halfway and referee Angus Gardner has had enough as he sends the offending player Atkinson to the sin bin. England are down to 13 men.
09:08 PM BST
DROP GOAL ENGLAND!
On his 100th cap Ford gives England the lead. Like he did on numerous occasions when these sides met in the group stages of the 2023 Rugby World Cup, he drops into the pocket and lands the drop goal.
Hello! We’ve seen George Ford dropping goals against Argentina before. Given England are down to 14, ace game management.
09:07 PM BST
19 mins: Argentina 0 England 0
Ford spots space in behind and Gonzalez thinks it will be a 50-22 so desperately keeps it in play. Elizalde then attempts to clear but Roebuck charges down the kick and the last touch comes off Elizalde so England will have the lineout deep inside the Argentina 22.
09:04 PM BST
18 mins: Argentina 0 England 0
England are penalised for not rolling away midway between the halfway line and the England 22. Referee Angus Gardner has given England a warning for their ill-discipline. Slade was the guilty man. Argentina are going for three.
Carreras does not land a penalty he should have done and that is a let-off for England.
09:03 PM BST
17 mins: Argentina 0 England 0
England hold Argentina up again and this time there is no penalty. Sale defence coach Byron McGuigan is with the England coaching team for this tour and he will be happy with that defensive set.
09:01 PM BST
16 mins: Argentina 0 England 0
Coles is upright in the tackle on Isa and there is head-on-head contact. It meets the threshold for a yellow card and we will go for an off-field review. Argentina will take a quick tap five metres out.
Argentina are held up over the line but England are offside so another penalty for the hosts. Another quick tap incoming...
08:58 PM BST
15 mins: Argentina 0 England 0
Argentina are attacking deep inside the England 22 and are just short of the line but we come back for a penalty to the hosts. The TMO is stepping in to check potential foul play from Coles...
08:58 PM BST
13 mins: Argentina 0 England 0
Carreras puts a kick in behind, spotting a gap, and nearly executes a terrific 50-22 but Ford scampers back to just stop it from going out. It takes him a little while to gather and he ends up behind his try line before getting his kick away. He is under pressure and his kick goes into touch still inside the England 22.
08:52 PM BST
10 mins: Argentina 0 England 0
Plenty of kicking so far as both sides feel each other out.
Slade is crunched in midfield by Isgro just inside the Argentina half and knocks on. Big hit, very well-timed.
No scores here but some pulverising shots early doors: Fin Baxter marmalised opposite number Mayco Vivas and Rodrigo Isgró has just obliterated Henry Slade. Twice now that the outside centre has been caught in possession with an England attack looking somewhat promising.
08:49 PM BST
6 mins: Argentina 0 England 0
Argentina are attacking on the fringes of the England 22 but the visitors steal possession and, a few phases later, Spencer clears. Curry was the man with the great steal from Carreras.
08:48 PM BST
5 mins: Argentina 0 England 0
Steward belts the ball into touch from inside his own 22 but Ford’s pass to Steward was deemed to be from just outside so Argentina will have the lineout inside the England 22.
08:46 PM BST
3 mins: Argentina 0 England 0
Argentina are awarded the first penalty of the match as England are pinged for not supporting bodyweight at the breakdown. Slade was the guilty party and Argentina kick towards the England 22.
08:43 PM BST
Kick-off
We are under way in La Plata.
Erm... after the anthems, the entire stadium decided to rise to their feet and jump in unison, just before kick-off. Our stand was literally shaking. Terrifying.
08:36 PM BST
Anthem time
England are out first, led out by their newest centurion George Ford, then the hosts emerge. It is now time for the national anthems.
On the occasion of his 100th cap, Telegraph Sport understands that George Ford was shown a congratulatory video last night by his team-mates. There were messages from many throughout Ford’s career, but also some celebrities, too. Frank Lampard, John Terry - Ford is a Chelsea fan - Joe Root; but also Bear Grylls and, amusingly, Tony Blair. It’ll be Ford hoping he masters No 10 against Argentina tonight...
08:32 PM BST
‘Ford is Blur to Farrell’s Oasis – but 100th cap gives him centre stage he deserves’
It is almost the cruellest of ironies that in the grand career of George Ford, the pomp and circumstance surrounding his 100th cap for England should be overshadowed by the Lions call-up of his old mate, occasional midfield partner, and intermittent rival, Owen Farrell.
This is a duo who have been lumped together as best of friends and best of enemies for over a decade. Farrell has described how they played against each other as 12-year-olds, then together at school, then Ford forced the England age-group selectors to push his rival to 12 to accommodate another playmaker at fly-half. With England Under-20s, it was Ford, and not Farrell, who won World Rugby’s junior player of the year award.
The pair have competed against each other at club level and also competed for the England fly-half berth, while also often reprising the 10-12 axis which gained such plaudits in their youth. But it was Farrell who, in terms of gongs and plaudits at senior level, was always just a notch above Ford.
For more from Charles Richardson, click here.
08:30 PM BST
Recent meetings
2023: Argentina 23-26 England
2023: England 27-10 Argentina
2022: England 29-30 Argentina
2019: England 39-10 Argentina
2017: England 21-8 Argentina
08:27 PM BST
Argentina’s last five results
British and Irish Lions 24-28 Argentina
France 37-23 Argentina
Ireland 22-19 Argentina
Italy 18-50 Argentina
South Africa 48-7 Argentina
08:24 PM BST
Rugby meets football
Incidentally, the Estadio Jorge Luis Hirschi is the home of local football outfit Club Estudiantes de La Plata. Why am I telling you that? Well, because the president and public face of the club is none other than Juan Sebastián Verón, the legendary former Manchester United midfielder. The word is that he will be among the 30-odd thousand spectators present this evening.
08:19 PM BST
The hosts have arrived
08:15 PM BST
England’s last five results
Six Nations 2025:
Wales 14-68 England
England 47-24 Italy
England 16-15 Scotland
England 26-25 France
Ireland 27-22 England
08:11 PM BST
Today’s international fixtures
Maori All Blacks 26-29 Scotland
Japan 24-19 Wales
New Zealand 31-27 France
Waratahs 10-21 British and Irish Lions
South Africa 42-24 Italy
Georgia 5-34 Ireland
Argentina vs England 8.40pm
08:05 PM BST
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08:02 PM BST
Full England squad
Forwards
Fin Baxter (Harlequins), Arthur Clark (Gloucester), Alex Coles (Northampton), Chandler Cunningham-South (Harlequins), Ben Curry (Sale), Theo Dan (Saracens), Trevor Davison (Northampton), Alex Dombrandt (Harlequins), Charlie Ewels (Bath), Jamie George (Saracens, co-captain), Joe Heyes (Leicester), Ted Hill (Bath), Nick Isiekwe (Saracens), Afolabi Fasogbon (Gloucester), Curtis Langdon (Northampton), Asher Opoku-Fordjour (Sale), Guy Pepper (Bath), Bevan Rodd (Sale), Sam Underhill (Bath), Tom Willis (Saracens)
Backs
Charlie Atkinson (Gloucester), Seb Atkinson (Gloucester), Oscar Beard (Harlequins), Joe Carpenter (Sale), Immanuel Feyi-Waboso (Exeter), George Ford (Sale, co-captain), Will Muir (Bath), Cadan Murley (Harlequins), Luke Northmore (Harlequins), Max Ojomoh (Bath), Harry Randall (Bristol), Tom Roebuck (Sale), Henry Slade (Exeter), Ben Spencer (Bath), Freddie Steward (Leicester), Jack van Poortvliet (Leicester)
07:58 PM BST
Special day for Ford
07:53 PM BST
Live from La Plata
07:50 PM BST
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07:44 PM BST
Teams
Argentina starting XV: 15 Benjamin Elizalde, 14 Rodrigo Isgró, 13 Lucio Cinti, 12 Justo Piccardo, 11 Santiago Cordero, 10 Santiago Carreras, 9 Gonzalo Bertranou, 8 Facundo Isa, 7 Juan Martín González, 6 Pablo Matera, 5 Pedro Rubiolo, 4 Lucas Paulos, 3 Pedro Delgado, 2 Julián Montoya (c), 1 Mayco Vivas
Replacements: 16 Bautista Bernasconi, 17 Thomas Gallo, 18 Francisco Coria Marchetti, 19 Santiago Grondona, 20 Joaquín Moro, 21 Simón Benítez Cruz, 22 Nicolás Roger, 23 Matías Moroni
England starting XV: 15 Freddie Steward, 14 Tom Roebuck, 13 Henry Slade, 12 Seb Atkinson, 11 Will Muir, 10 George Ford (cc), 9 Ben Spencer, 8 Tom Willis, 7 Sam Underhill, 6 Ben Curry, 5 Alex Coles, 4 Charlie Ewels, 3 Joe Heyes, 2 Jamie George (cc), 1 Fin Baxter
Replacements: 16 Theo Dan, 17 Bevan Rodd, 18 Asher Opoku-Fordjour, 19 Chandler Cunningham-South, 20 Guy Pepper, 21 Alex Dombrandt, 22 Jack van Poortvliet, 23 Cadan Murley
07:39 PM BST
Match preview
England kick off their summer tour of the Americas at the Estadio Jorge Luis Hirschi in La Plata as they take on Argentina in the first of a two-match series. England play two games in Argentina, who currently sit fifth in the world rankings, one place above England, before finishing their summer in Washington DC when they take on USA on July 19.
Steve Borthwick’s men head on tour without 13 players who are on the British and Irish Lions tour but can lean upon the experience of the likes of George Ford, Jamie George and Henry Slade. Ford and George have been named co-captains for the tour. England took on a France XV at Allianz Stadium two weeks ago but fell to a late 26-24 loss, letting a 12-point lead slip in the final 10 minutes. Ahead of today’s game, head coach Steve Borthwick has spoken about the importance of a tour like this.
“The three-Test series is a huge challenge and a valuable opportunity for the continued development of this squad. For some of the younger players, this will be their first experience of touring overseas with England. Travelling together helps strengthen team bonds and offers a valuable chance for new players to integrate into our environment. It is an exciting test for us, and we are looking forward to seeing how we continue to evolve as a team.”
It is a special day for George Ford, who wins his 100th cap today, becoming just the seventh England player to do so, 11 years on from his debut against Wales in 2014. Ford follows in the footsteps of Ben Youngs, Dan Cole, Jason Leonard, Owen Farrell, Courtney Lawes, Danny Care and George in the century club. Borthwick has paid tribute to the Sale Sharks fly-half.
“George has been a standout player for over a decade. Reaching 100 caps is a remarkable achievement, and it speaks volumes about both the professional and the person he is. Everyone in the squad is incredibly proud to share this moment with him.”
Argentina were last in action just a couple of weeks ago, as they beat the British and Irish Lions 28-24 in Dublin. These sides met twice during the World Cup in 2023, with England winning on both occasions, including in the third/ fourth play-off. Ford played a starring role in the group stage game, scoring all 27 points to lead 14-man England to victory. England last toured Argentina in 2017 when the Lions were in New Zealand, with England winning the series 2-0.
Kick-off from La Plata is at 8.40pm BST.
2025-07-05T22:30:51Z