Rugby: Rugby-Steward at fullback for England, Marler and Martin start v Springboks

PARIS (Reuters) – England have recalled fullback Freddie Steward to start Saturday’s World Cup semi-final against South Africa, while Joe Marler and George Martin are drafted into the pack in the team named by coach Steve Borthwick on Thursday.

Ellis Genge and Ollie Chessum move to the bench but there is no place in the squad for Marcus Smith, the starting fullback against Fiji. It was not initially clear whether Smith had been fit for selection after suffering a head injury in that game, though Steward was always likely to return.

England’s back-to-back player of the year is one of the best under the high ball in the game and is a sturdy defender. France struggled to deal with South Africa’s aerial bombardment in their quarter-final but Steward will back his abilities.

The 22-year-old had played 28 consecutive matches before being rested for the Chile game. He returned for the final pool match against Samoa before missing out versus Fiji.

Loosehead prop Marler and huge lock Martin, making his second start of the tournament, have been brought in to help beef up England’s scrum against a South Africa pack who were impressively strong against France.

“After an excellent few days’ preparation in Paris, we look forward to the challenge of playing the World Champions and number one ranked team in the world,” Borthwick said.

“Through this tournament the team has progressed, with the players repeatedly finding a way to win, sometimes in challenging circumstances. We will once again need to be at our very best this weekend.

“There is no doubt the players will truly relish the challenge of knockout rugby under the lights in Paris.”

England go into the game seeking revenge for the 2019 final defeat by the Springboks and hoping to earn a final showdown against New Zealand or Argentina, who meet on Friday.

England: 15-Freddie Steward, 14-Jonny May, 13-Joe Marchant, 12-Manu Tuilagi, 11-Elliot Daly, 10-Owen Farrell (captain), 9-Alex Mitchell, 8-Ben Earl, 7-Tom Curry, 6-Courtney Lawes, 5-George Martin, 4-Maro Itoje, 3-Dan Cole, 2-Jamie George, 1-Joe Marler.

Replacements: 16-Theo Dan, 17-Ellis Genge, 18-Kyle Sinckler, 19-Ollie Chessum, 20-Billy Vunipola, 21-Danny Care, 22-George Ford, 23-Ollie Lawrence

(Reporting by Mitch Phillips, editing by Ken Ferris)