Manu Tuilagi to collide with Samoa for first time on emotional World Cup day

07 October 2023 , 08:07

764 0

Manusamoa Tuilagi is named after the country where he was born and who he plays against for the first time today (Image: Neal Simpson/REX/Shutterstock)

Try telling Manu Tuilagi there is nothing at stake today when England end their pool campaign at the Rugby World Cup.

His team have already won Pool D, guaranteeing a quarter-final in Marseille next weekend. Samoa have lost twice and are unable to advance.

Which changes nothing for Tuilagi, up against the country of his birth for the first time and so focused on delivering a performance that he withdrew from media duties this week.

In his absence Owen Farrell and George Ford paired together for the first time in two and a half years has led the bulletins.

Nobody has mentioned Tuilagi, the youngest of six brothers and only one to opt for England over Samoa after coming to the UK as a kid and qualifying on residency.

Borthwick puts faith in snubbed Jones players as he looks for England revival

But the Islanders team will certainly have thought about him, according to those who know the wrecking ball centre best and are glad to be playing with and not against him this evening.

Manu Tuilagi to collide with Samoa for first time on emotional World Cup day

Tuilagi with four of his five brothers (c)

“You don’t need me to tell you how crucial Manu is and pivotal to what we do here. You saw it in the Argentina game when he made that tackle.”

Chessum refers to the moment Tuilagi almost broke Santiago Chocobares in two with a perfect piledriver of a shot in Marseille. It almost broke the internet too, as footage went viral.

“The whole stadium felt that,” added Chessum, who describes the entire Tuilagi clan as “scary, scary” players. “That’s what he can bring to a game. Those moments of sheer physicality.

Tuilagi has five stars on his elbow which represent the Samoa flag

“There’s not many players in the world that can match that and I think it’s a real fear factor for other teams when they play against him.

“He’s massive for us, on and off the ball. The fortunate thing for me is I don’t have to worry about getting smacked by him.”

England are unbeaten and in a good place, despite a tournament-ending injury for the luckless Jack Willis. A likely last-eight clash with Fiji is as good as they could hope for.

Tuilagi recovers in a cryotherapy chamber post England training in 2021 (above) and (below) older brother Alesana in action for Samoa at 2015 World Cup (The RFU Collection via Getty Ima)

(Getty Images)

By the time they get to the Cote d’Azur, however, it will be more than a month since their last match against top drawer opposition.

Put bluntly, Japan and Chile are no preparation for the heavyweights lying in wait at the business end. And Samoa are ranked even lower than the Japanese.

Cohesion is the absolute minimum Steve Borthwick needs to see at Stade Pierre Mauroy where he sends out a side as close as dammit to that which will start the do-or-die rounds.

Your chance to get England & Scotland 2023 Guinness Six Nations tickets

Tuilagi spreads his wings during a match against France in 2013 (David Rogers - RFU)

Does bringing Farrell in at inside centre improve or disrupt a back division that looked well balanced with Ford at 10 and two orthodox centres in Tuilagi and Joe Marchant?

His return means Marchant switching to the wing in place of specialists Elliot Daly and Henry Arundell.

Does sacrificing pace on the outside and creative invention at fullback, where Freddie Steward starts ahead of Marcus Smith, best equip them to face France or New Zealand or South Africa further down the line?