Fiji vs England: Tom Roebuck makes squad for George Farbank

Sale wing Tom Roebuck has been drafted into the England squad as head coach Steve Borthwick works with back-three options on the injury raft.

Roebuck replaced Northampton full-back George Farbank, who dropped out of the starting line-up. 45-21 loss to South Africa on Saturday including appendicitis.

England have lost their past five Tests, including a 48–7 loss to Wales in February 2026.

Anything less than a win against Fiji at Liverpool’s Hill Dickinson Stadium on Saturday will pile pressure on Borthwick, despite recent support from his Rugby Football Union (RFU) bosses, to take the team to next year’s Rugby World Cup in Australia.

England have two significant injury concerns heading into their first game in the North West since 2015.

Wing Cadan Murley, who started in the defeat to the Springboks, and Freddie Steward, the team’s only specialist full-back after Farbank’s illness, are suffering from shoulder and ankle knocks respectively.

Tommy Freeman, who was at outside center in Johannesburg, could return to his more accustomed wing slot, or fill in at full-back, where Marcus Smith started last weekend.

Emmanuel Fay-Waboso is likely to start on one wing, leaving Roebuck and Saracens teenager Noah Caluri to compete for another berth if Murali fails to recover and Freeman is deployed elsewhere.

Both Roebuck and Caloury are strong in the air, with Borthwick highlighting an area for improvement after two-time reigning world champions South Africa struggled and dominated contested kicking.

“They won seven kicks back and we won a couple,” Borthwick said.

“It’s a big anomaly at this level and obviously a big deciding factor because it gave them field position and put pressure on the team.”

Bristol’s South African-born center Benhard Janse van Rensburg came into contention for his first Test cap, completing five years of residency and being the subject of a successful appeal by the RFU over his eligibility.