Janse van Rensburg poised to face Fiji as England look to rebound from Boks defeat

England’s rugby players could be forgiven for wondering which way is up. On Sunday they were in South Africa, next Monday they will be in South America and they are now in sub‑Saharan Surrey preparing to face Fiji in Liverpool this Saturday. Ironically it is warmer in Bagshot this week than it is in Suva, albeit with fewer coral reefs and fresh coconuts.

Regardless of the rotating backdrop, though, there is no ­disguising the lingering disappointment of the 45-21 defeat against the ­Springboks in Johannesburg last weekend. ­Victory at Everton’s Hill Dickinson Stadium would not repair everything overnight but there is widespread ­acceptance within the camp that they need to rebound strongly on Saturday.

On the personnel front England will be without the injured Beno Obano and Cadan Murley, whose ­respective hamstring and shoulder problems have led to call-ups for Manny ­Iyogun and Chandler Cunningham-South. Otherwise Freddie Steward is back and available for selection, while Steve Borthwick seems in no rush to rest one or two key forwards at the fag end of a long season. Jamie George, for example, is set to lead the side again with England clearly determined not to sleepwalk into a sixth successive Test defeat with a heavily rotated lineup.

There is likely to be a role, never­theless, for the newly qualified Benhard Janse van Rensburg when England confirm their starting team on Thursday, with the defence coach Richard Wigglesworth happy to talk up the South Africa-born centre. “He brings an all-court game, doesn’t he? I enjoy how he wants to hit and loves the physical side of the game, but he also wants the ball on the other side. If he gets a chance I’m sure that’s what he’ll show us as well.”

Wigglesworth, who hails from Lancashire, is also looking forward to heading back to the north-west of England, where Test rugby union is rarer than freshly served unicorn. “I’m pretty passionate about rugby in the north and what can be done there,” the former international scrum-half said. As he well knows, though, there will be precious few northern converts if England don’t lift their game sig­nificantly in several areas.

Chandler Cunningham-South has been called up for England as injury cover for the Fiji match. Photograph: Tom Jenkins/The Guardian

High on their list, he suggests, is more contestable kicking success, greater accuracy and sharper decision making, particularly against a team such as Fiji, who thrive on loose balls and sub-par defending. “There was a lot of effort and endeavour [against South Africa],” Wigglesworth said.

“But for 10 minutes at the start of each half we weren’t good enough, and a good team exposes that. They were very accurate and we weren’t, and they ended up with all the possession and momentum. The middle part of the match didn’t look like that, but it’s an 80-minute game.”

Specifically the management are looking to reduce the penalty count and to keep 15 players on the field, having finished the Ellis Park game with 13 after yellow cards for Tommy Freeman and Guy Pepper. “In the Six Nations there was some breakdown decision making that is going to cost you in a Test match. These ones [against South Africa] were high force, high speed. It’s ­split‑second stuff. These are the lessons that as a young team, as individuals, you have to remember. They didn’t need a ­bollocking, but that doesn’t mean we’ve not addressed and debriefed it as we always do.

“I’ve lost for England and I know a bit about what they might be carrying, so they don’t need the guy walking around with a sour face going: ‘Can’t believe we did this and that.’ They need support and good coaching. Is that a prod sometimes? Absolutely, but sometimes it’s an arm around the shoulder. Our job as coaches is to give them what they need, not what we want.”