Pollock starts at No 8 as England make 10 changes to face Japan

Henry Pollock is getting the shirt he has been waiting for. England head coach Steve Borthwick has made 10 changes for Saturday's Nations Championship Test against Japan at Twickenham (kick-off 4.40pm), and the breakout back-rower starts at No 8.

What happened?

Pollock scored two tries off the bench last week, even though he was playing out of position on the wing. Even so, this will be only the second time he has started in 15 Tests.

There are plenty of other fresh faces. Max Ojomoh starts at inside-centre in his first cap in a year, with Seb Atkinson out with a hip injury. Will Joseph takes over from Tommy Freeman on the right wing, his first England appearance since July 2022.

The front row is entirely new: Ellis Genge, Luke Cowan-Dickie and Asher Opoku-Fordjour. George Martin starts in the second row, and veteran fly-half George Ford is picked ahead of Marcus Smith, who is on the bench.

Cadan Murley and Freddie Steward complete the back three with Joseph. Immanuel Feyi-Waboso (ankle) and George Furbank (groin) are both injured. Maro Itoje captains the side again.

Northampton Saints scrum-half Archie McParland could make his Test debut off the bench. "He's had some bad luck with injury, so it's especially pleasing to be able to name him," Borthwick said.

What about Japan?

Japan have changed just one starter. Riku Tokito, who impressed with the sevens team at the Nagoya Asian Games, debuts on the left wing. He replaces the injured Inoke Burua.

The side lost 28-21 to Wales in Cardiff last Saturday, a result that was closer than the score suggests. Riku Kitahara stays at fly-half after his debut there. On the bench, Shinobu Fujiwara comes in at scrum-half for Kenta Fukuda.

One notable absence: Ryunosuke Ito, the university player coach Eddie Jones picked and who scored against Australia. Meiji University needs him for a collegiate competition, so he misses the northern hemisphere leg. "That's the uniqueness of Japanese rugby," Jones said.

Why does this one have extra spice?

Jones was sacked as England coach in December 2022 and took over Japan again in 2024. This week he said he wants Japan to make the Twickenham sky fall in on England.

Borthwick is taking it seriously. "Japan are a very well-coached side who will challenge us in different ways, and we know we'll need to bring intensity throughout the game," he said.