England vs Argentina live: Nathan Hughes and Semesa Rokoduguni tries get autumn internationals off to winning start
Follow the latest from this weekend's autumn international at Twickenham
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Your support makes all the difference.England return to international action for the first time this season as they take on Argentina in the first of three autumn Tests at Twickenham, with Australia and Samoa set to follow over the next three weekends. Follow the latest here.
- England vs Argentina kicks off at 15:00 GMT
- Eddie Jones rests Mauro Itoje and Owen Farrell
- Henry Slade and Courtney Lawes start, with Sam Underhill making home debut
- Sam Simmonds could win first cap from the bench
- Juan Martin Hernandez starts at No 10 with Nicolas Sanchez on the bench
Follow the live action below...
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Preview...
The clash will be the third time that England and Argentina have met this year, with Eddie Jones’ side claiming a 2-0 series victory in the summer despite taking a hugely inexperienced squad to South America due to the British and Irish Lions call-ups.
However, this time around England are back to almost full strength, although Jones has elected to rest two of his most influential players in Owen Farrell and Maro Itoje due to their “exceptional” schedules. The likes of Anthony Watson, Courtney Lawes and Dan Cole all return though, while Elliot Daly has somehow recovered from a slight knee ligament tear two weeks ago to take his place in the starting line-up.
One player who will not take a part though is Sale Sharks flanker Tom Curry. The 19-year-old was named on the replacements’ bench by Jones, only to dislocate a bone in his wrist in training on Thursday that required surgery and has subsequently ruled him out for three months.
In Curry’s absence, Sam Simmonds is called up to the squad and the Exeter Chiefs back-row could make his debut on Saturday if he comes on.
Here’s everything you need to know about the autumn international.
When is it?
England vs Argentina takes place on Saturday 11 November.
What time does it start?
The match kicks off at 15:00 GMT.
Where can I watch it?
Live coverage will begin on Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Action from 14:00 GMT. Highlights will be shown on BBC Two on Sunday 12 November from 13:00 GMT.
You can also follow the match live with The Independent here.
Teams...
England: Mike Brown; Anthony Watson, Jonathan Joseph, Henry Slade, Elliot Daly; George Ford, Ben Youngs; Mako Vunipola, Dylan Hartley, Dan Cole; Courtney Lawes, George Kruis; Chris Robshaw, Sam Underhill, Nathan Hughes.
Replacements: Jamie George, Ellis Genge, Harry Williams, Joe Launchbury, Sam Simmonds, Danny Care, Alex Lozowski, Semesa Rokoduguni.
Argentina: Joaquin Tuculet; Ramiro Moyano, Matias Moroni, Santiago Gonzalez Iglesias, Emiliano Boffelli; Juan Martin Hernandez, Martin Landajo; Santiago Garcia Botta, Agustin Creevy, Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro, Matias Alemanno, Tomas Lavanini, Pablo Matera, Marcos Kremer, Tomas Lezana.
Replacements: Julian Montoya, Lucas Noguera, Enrique Pieretto, Benjamin Macome, Leonardo Senatore, Gonzalo Bertranou, Nicolas Sanchez, Sebastian Cancelliere.
Good afternoon and welcome to The Independent's live coverage of today's autumn international between England and Argentina, brought to you from pitchside at Twickenham.
Ahead of the match, read our main preview for the series, and while it may not look to be the most difficult of series', there's more than meets the eye over the next three weeks:
It's captain vs captain today as Dylan Hartley goes head-to-head - literally - with Agustin Creevy, the fabled Argentina skipper. In the build-up to the game, Hartley praised Creevy for being the "beating heart" of the Pumas, and you can read what else he had to say about his opposite man here:
It was a fairly unusual squad selection from Eddie Jones this week as he decided to rest to linchpins of the England side during his reign in Owen Farrell and Maro Itoje. Here's what the Australian had to say about his reasons for doing so:
England have arrived!
Dylan Hartley leads England into Twickenham
There will be a new name among the replacements for England this afternoon as the Exeter Chiefs back-row, Sam Simmonds, comes into the side to replace the unfortunate Tom Curry, who suffered a dislocated wrist on Thursday and will be ruled out for 12 weeks as a result.
What can we expect today? Well, the stats point to England pulling away in the second half, given more often than not the Pumas tend to fall away after the break:
He may not be in the squad, but you just can't keep Owen Farrell out of the action. He's out in the middle during the warm-up alongside George Ford, and not only is he helping out his teammate, he's actually kicking at goal. So much for a rest...
Here's how the two teams line up today:
England: Mike Brown; Anthony Watson, Jonathan Joseph, Henry Slade, Elliot Daly; George Ford, Ben Youngs; Mako Vunipola, Dylan Hartley, Dan Cole; Courtney Lawes, George Kruis; Chris Robshaw, Sam Underhill, Nathan Hughes.
Replacements: Jamie George, Ellis Genge, Harry Williams, Joe Launchbury, Sam Simmonds, Danny Care, Alex Lozowski, Semesa Rokoduguni.
Argentina: Joaquin Tuculet; Ramiro Moyano, Matias Moroni, Santiago Gonzalez Iglesias, Emiliano Boffelli; Juan Martin Hernandez, Martin Landajo; Santiago Garcia Botta, Agustin Creevy, Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro, Matias Alemanno, Tomas Lavanini, Pablo Matera, Marcos Kremer, Tomas Lezana.
Replacements: Julian Montoya, Lucas Noguera, Enrique Pieretto, Benjamin Macome, Leonardo Senatore, Gonzalo Bertranou, Nicolas Sanchez, Sebastian Cancelliere.
One's to watch:
Elliot Daly - The Wasps wing comes into the match with a slight question mark above his head, having suffered a partial tear to his MCL just two weeks ago. He's come through every test so far and, of course, possesses that booking left boot of his to give England an extra threat. But how will the knee hold up?
Sam Underhill - The Bath flanker makes his home debut for England today and, having impressed out in Argentina last summer, he has lit up the Premiership so far this season. The openside may just be the man that Eddie Jones has been searching for, and if hits his stride today he could cause real problems for the Pumas.
Juan Martin Hernandez - Nicolas Sanchez is ousted from the No 10 shirt that he has held since before the 2015 World Cup, and the ultra-talented Hernandez moves to fly-half in an effort to spark the back line into life. Argentina lost all six of their Rugby Championship matches earlier this season, and they will be desperate to salvage some pride this autumn. In Hernandez, they have a player who can spark something out of nothing, and while he's ticking on these days, he still has that magic touch.
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