Billy Vunipola insists he is ready to resume his primary function as England’s battering ram having played a supporting role against Chile which allowed others to shine.
Vunipola is competing with the in-form Ben Earl for the number eight jersey in the final group match against Samoa on October 7 when Steve Borthwick’s team are expected to clinch their World Cup quarter-final spot as Pool D winners.
Making his first start since completing a two-match ban for a dangerous tackle, the imposing Saracens back row found his ability to make a significant impact in the 71-0 demolition of Chile last Saturday curtailed by the all-out assault being conducted around him.
“It’s funny to say this because we beat them quite convincingly but it’s tough for me to try and take all the onus on myself when everyone else is very keen to try and get the ball in their hands,” Vunipola said.
“My role becomes that of a support player and as much as I want to have the ball in my hands, I want to put the team in the best position possible. So if that means giving the ball to Owen Farrell more often, then so be it.
“Obviously having a lot of involvements is a positive. I would have liked to have had 15-16 carries, but at the end of the day that’s not what the team needed from me on Saturday. My role was to try and help the team and I felt like I did that.
“But I felt positive coming away because the forwards put the backs in positions where they could run free and attack.
“I’m supremely confident in what I bring in terms of my physicality and against physical teams I know I can hold my own. When I’m called upon I’m right here, waiting.”
England have overcome an abysmal World Cup build-up consisting of three defeats in four preparation fixtures to dispatch Argentina, Japan and Chile with ease since arriving in France.
Although the suspicion remains that they will struggle when meeting the type of heavyweight opposition they have yet to face, they will enter a likely quarter-final against Fiji with the wind in their sails.
It has since emerged that their disastrous results last month were partly a consequence of their heavy conditioning programme, which has been designed to place them in the best possible position for the key phases of the World Cup.
Vunipola uses David Haye’s world heavyweight title defeat by Wladimir Klitschko in 2011, which he blamed on an injured toe, to explain why England kept the knowledge of their empty tanks to themselves.
“I sit here with a team that’s doing really well after what some people said was a disaster in August, but the work we were doing away from prying eyes was always going to bear these results.
“It was just tough little period to ride through but luckily we have come through it. We couldn’t talk about it otherwise it would be seen as an excuse.
“The only example I can think of is when David Haye was complaining about his little toe after he lost his fight.
“It’s not something you can disclose but we were training really hard because our goal was to be ready and fresh for Argentina.”
Kane in the clear for Euro 2024 after back injury, says Southgate
Gareth Southgate has confirmed England captain Harry Kane will be fully fit for Euro 2024, saying the back injury which has kept him out in recent weeks has cleared up.
Fears were expressed about Kane's chances of featuring in Germany when he missed Bayern Munich's final two games of the Bundesliga season, returning to England to seek treatment on a back problem.
Kane enjoyed a stunning individual campaign in 2023-24, with no player from Europe's top five leagues bettering his 44 goals in all competitions, though he was unable to end his wait for a first major trophy.
England will hope that arrives in his new homeland in July, and Southgate is confident Kane will be in peak condition for the tournament.
"Kane is pretty much clear now. He is quite relaxed about it. I think a sensible decision was taken not to push for the last game there," Southgate said.
"Back problems can just happen, but it is not something we are concerned about at this moment in time.
"Our understanding of it is that it is something that is pretty much clear now."
Kane has scored 12 goals across the last three major international tournaments, netting six at the 2018 World Cup, four at Euro 2020 and two at the 2022 World Cup, with Kylian Mbappe the only other European player to equal that haul.
While Kane's incredible goalscoring feats are yet to be rewarded with silverware, Southgate says his striker is determined to put that right at the Euros.
"It won't be nice for him and I am sure he will be aware of what people will say about that," Southgate said of Kane's failure to win a trophy with Bayern.
"But his love for this challenge and desire to make this work has never wavered and he is definitely looking forward to this tournament.
"He has delivered what we thought he would deliver in terms of goals in that league and I know the club are super happy with what he has done."
Southgate envisages central role for 'brilliant' Foden at Euro 2024
Gareth Southgate believes Phil Foden's starting position is less important than the spaces he is allowed to attack, pledging to find a way of letting him operate centrally at Euro 2024.
Foden was included in England's 33-man preliminary squad on Tuesday, and he is expected to be among the first names on the teamsheet after enjoying a fine campaign.
Foden was named Premier League Player of the Season as he helped Manchester City win an unprecedented fourth straight title, scoring 19 goals and adding seven assists.
Only three players in the league bettered Foden's goal tally, while he also ranked seventh in the division for chances created (73) and fourth for possession won in the final third (35 times).
Foden scored two excellent goals as City clinched the title with a 3-1 final-day win over West Ham, drifting infield from the right to find space between the lines and in the penalty area.
While the presence of Real Madrid's Jude Bellingham and Arsenal's Bukayo Saka has led many to conclude Foden will be stationed on the left in Germany, Southgate is aware of the need to grant him positional freedom.
"Phil has played off the right, off the left, the key is where he ends up, not his starting position," Southgate said at a press conference on Tuesday.
"He plays on the left with City, sometimes he stays wide, but he's allowed to drift, and it has always been the same with us. He's allowed to drift.
"Then there's where a player has to defend. Jude has played as a 10 all season, and sometimes he has defended on the left for Real Madrid.
"It's about where these players arrive and where you allow them to drift, that's the key. I think if you spoke to all of our players, we never pin them to a touchline, that's not how we work so there is that freedom."
Foden produced a series of talismanic displays for City in the run-in, scoring match-winning hat-tricks against Brentford and Aston Villa and masterminding a vital comeback against Manchester United with two goals in March.
The 23-year-old stepped up while players like Kevin De Bruyne and Erling Haaland were sidelined through injury, and Southgate has been impressed by his ability to shoulder that responsibility.
"It's obvious the brilliant season Phil has had, how he stepped up in big games not only when big players have been out but when he's been playing alongside them as well," Southgate added.
"You want him in central areas as you do one or two others, so we have to find the best way of making that happen."
Buttler: England looking to repair dented pride at T20 World Cup
England's white-ball captain Jos Buttler says the team had their pride dented by last year's 50-over World Cup failure, as they look to set things right at the T20 tournament.
England endured a dismal defence of their ODI title in India last year, failing to make it out of the group stage as they lost six of their nine matches.
They are desperate for a better showing as they look to retain their 20-over crown at the T20 World Cup in the United States and West Indies, with their opener coming against Scotland on June 4.
Before then, Buttler's team face Pakistan in a four-match home T20I series, and he has witnessed a determination to respond within the camp.
"That pride was obviously dented and it was a really disappointing competition," Buttler recalled.
"But life moves on, it's a chapter in the book and there's lessons you learn but we're presented with a new opportunity, a different format.
"We go to the West Indies and want to give a better account of ourselves."
Headingley is the venue for England's first match against Pakistan on Wednesday, when Jofra Archer could make his first international appearance for over a year.
The fast bowler has missed the better part of two years with elbow and back issues, but Buttler says he has impressed in training this week.
"He's bowling quick," Buttler said of Archer. "It was good fun facing him in the nets yesterday, a really good challenge. It's great to see him back."
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