England v Japan predictions and rugby union tips: Tourists face England backlash

Free rugby tips, best bets and analysis for Saturday's autumn international between England and Japan.

Where to watch

Amazon Prime, 3.15pm Saturday

Best bet

England to win by 21 to 30 points
1pt 3-1 Coral, Ladbrokes

Match preview

England will be looking for a much improved performance following last week's Twickenham defeat to Argentina, and they should get it against Japan.

Head coach Eddie Jones went for a power game against Los Pumas and has gone for more of the same, retaining Maro Itoje in the back row.

But he has added an injection of pace, with Jonny May fit to start on the wing, Sam Simmonds coming in at number eight, and last week's tryscorer Jack van Poortvliet replacing Ben Youngs at scrum-half.

Not all of Jones's decisions have been well received and he is often criticised for his selections, but May has been pretty much a first-choice player for him while bringing in Simmonds for Billy Vunipola at number eight is something pundits have long called for.

Japan performed well against New Zealand last time out, beaten 38-31, while their autumn Tests last year included a 29-20 reverse to Scotland and 60-5 defeat to Ireland.

The Brave Blossoms have struggled to build on their strong showing at their own World Cup in 2019, not helped by the disruptions of Covid, but the key to Saturday's showdown could be that they are facing a focused and hurting England outfit with the right tools to make a mark.

As long as they can cut out the errors that dogged them against Argentina, England look to have what they need to cover a handicap in the mid-teens, although a better value bet might be to go for a winning margin in the 20s at an attractive price.

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