Wales aim to end losing run against England

Guinness Men's Six Nations: Wales v England

Venue: Principality Stadium, Cardiff Date: Saturday, 15 March Kick-off: 16:45 GMT

Coverage: Watch live on BBC One and BBC iPlayer; listen live on BBC Radio 5 Live, BBC Radio Wales, BBC Radio Cymru & BBC Sounds; text commentary and highlights on BBC Sport website and app.

Nothing stirs a Welsh crowd quite like the chance to get one over old rivals England. And despite their recent struggles, that have seen them register 16 straight defeats, the Principality Stadium will be buzzing with the opportunity to extinguish the Red Rose's title chances.

Wales may have lost both games under interim head coach Matt Sherratt but there can be no denying the squad's improvement since Warren Gatland's departure, and they will fancy their chances of a first win over England since 2021.

England head coach Steve Borthwick has made some bold team calls as he targets a fourth-successive victory that would put them into first place and crank up the pressure on France, who take on Scotland in the late kick-off knowing then that only a win will do.

It may have been a far from perfect championship for Borthwick's charges, but securing a top-two finish would be an impressive achievement given defeat in the opening match to Ireland was their seventh in succession to tier-one opposition.

Sherratt has made two changes in his final match in charge.

Scarlets centre Joe Roberts makes his first professional start on the wing in place of Tom Rogers, who fractured his thumb against Scotland.

In the back row, Aaron Wainwright comes in at blindside with captain Jac Morgan switching to number seven and Tommy Reffell dropping to the bench.

Wales: 15-Murray, 14- Roberts, 13-Llewellyn, 12-B Thomas, 11-Mee; 10-Anscombe, 9-T Williams; 1-N Smith, 2-Dee, 3-John, 4-Rowlands, 5-Jenkins, 6-Wainwright, 7-Morgan (capt) 8-Faletau.

Replacements: 16-D Lake, 17-G Thomas, 18-K Assiratti, 19-Teddy Williams, 20-Reffell, 21-R Williams, 22-J Evans, 23-Tompkins.

England have made extensive alterations to their team with four personnel changes and a further three positional ones.

Marcus Smith returns at full-back and Tom Roebuck comes in on the right wing with Tommy Freeman switching to centre in the wake of Ollie Lawrence's Achilles injury. Elliot Daly shifts from 15 to the left wing.

In the forwards, Luke Cowan-Dickie replaces Jamie George at hooker and Ben Curry is selected ahead of Tom Willis. The final positional switch sees Ben Earl move to number eight. Henry Pollock, the 20-year-old Northampton flanker, could make his debut off the bench, while veteran fly-half George Ford is in line for his first appearance of the Championship.

England: 15-Smith, 14-Roebuck, 13-Freeman, 12-Dingwall, 11-Daly; 10-F Smith, 9-Mitchell; 1-Genge, 2-Cowan-Dickie, 3-Stuart, 4-Itoje (capt), 5-Chessum, 6-T Curry, 7-B Curry, 8-Earl.

Replacements: 16-George, 17-Baxter, 18-Heyes, 19-Cunningham-South, 20-Pollock, 21-Willis, 22-Van Poortvliet, 23-Ford

Wales interim head coach Matt Sherratt: "If that win comes it would give everyone a massive lift, especially against England at home.

"I would love to sign off [with a win], not for me but for the players and staff who have been here for a long time. It would be huge for them. It's important that it's not something we talk about a huge amount in camp or you can get a bit desperate.

"There'll be emotion on Saturday but it's about getting that balance between heart and brain. There'll be stacks of heart but we need to get our game on the pitch."

England head coach Steve Borthwick: "Our aspiration is to win the tournament, that has always been the target and that has not changed. The team is really clear on what we need to do to put ourselves in that position."

"We want to do it by playing fast and getting the ball to our players with strength, pace and athleticism. That is exactly how we want to play this weekend."

Andrew Cotter: A fixture that always stirs the emotions but the fact that England still have an outside chance of the title and that Wales could end their losing run against their great rival sets this one up beautifully.

Despite the positive signs since Sherratt took charge Wales know they'll need a bit more carrying power, which is why Wainwright comes in for Reffell in the back row.

England, meanwhile, have reshuffled their backline following Lawrence's injury. They are certainly not short of playmakers with Marcus Smith returning to full-back, but as England go hunting for tries, can Wales expose their defence?

If they play as they did against Ireland, or in the second half against Scotland, it's possible. What is guaranteed is the atmosphere under the roof in Cardiff will be a fitting finale for both of these sides in this Championship.

Head-to-head

Wales

England