Borthwick switches things up as he looks to exploit the tired Japanese legs.

Off – Tuilagi, Steward, George

On – Smith, Lawrence, Dan

Ford is calm and collective as he sends the kick through the posts to add another two points

England dominate at the scrum inside Japan’s five-metre line and Ford’s cross-field kick is inch perfect as Steward hangs out on the wing before collecting the ball and touching it down for a third Roses try.

Lawes departs to get treatment for a cut as Martin is brought on. Ford takes over captaincy duties.

It’s a lot better play from England than what we have seen for so much of this match as Ford dummies and makes ground before being pulled down five metres from the try line. Stuart then knocks on from a pick and go but this is better from Borthwick’s side.

Steve Borthwick finally goes to his bench and makes two changes as Ellis Genge and Ben Youngs replace Marler and Mitchell.

Billy Vunipola is also added into the fray as Ludlam is hooked.

It’s only taken the best part of 58 minutes but finally we have lift-off in Nice as both teams have chances at either end. Earls makes good ground as he gets his head down and smashes through challenges.

Matsushima then shows electric feet to side-step three challenges inside his own 10 metres and carry the ball all the way into England’s half before he is brought down. Sensational skill.

Ford knocks the resulting conversion through the posts and England are back in control.

It’s an error from England but Lawes scores a try after the ball is shown to have bounced off Joe Marler’s head and into the hands of the Roses captain.

England’s errors continue and Matsuda reduces the deficit to just one point as his kick directly in front of the posts sails over.

Japan make their second bunch of changes as they bring in fresh legs to disrupt England.

Loosehead prop Inagaki is replaced by Millar as Valu comes on for Koo.

This match is so erratic as Ford’s kick is brilliantly gathered by Japan full-back Lemeki who then evades a few tackles before being brought down. His pop-pass is then knocked on and Ford boots the ball into the dead-ball zone. Serious lack of quality on show.

England have bodies forward again and break but it all seems so unorganised and Steward then knocks on as he latches onto a Ford pass.

There’s space for Mitchell to try and find Steward with a cross-field kick but instead he opts to give the ball to Itoje who is isolated and Japan turnover and win a penalty. England have to do better when in these situations.

That’s better from England as Daly puts on the afterburners and makes yards. He is chased down by Fakatava who does well to put him into touch.

The trailing side get us restarted and both teams will need an improved performance in the next 40 minutes.

CHRIS FOY IN NICE: England lead 13-9 but that was not a great half at all. They were messy and stodgy in attack – when they did attack, which wasn’t very often.

The ball has been in the air a lot, which won’t have done much for the TV viewing figures at home. Hopefully the spectacle picks up after the break.

It’s poor game management just before half time from Japan as they are penalised again and this time Ford decides to kick. He adds another three more points and that brings up the break.

England win the lineout but immediately make an error as Earl mistimes his pass that is meant for Ludlam and instead hits George in the face with the ball. He knocks it on and there is clearly some miscommunication there.

England try to use their advantage for a Japan player coming in from the side at a maul but Ford’s kick is intercepted. He then opts to kick for touch instead of going for the points.

We have a few quick scrums and a slight break in play as a few players receive treatment. It’s hot, it’s physcial and neither set of players wants to concede an inch.

England lose possession through some sloppy play and the ball is just too far in front of Leitch who watches Earl dive on the ball and get up again before side-stepping the experience Japan star.

The Japan fly-half completes his penalty and pulls his side back to within one point. This match has been incredibly stop-start but it is close.

It was perhaps too big a kick for Ford as he pulls his effort to the right and Japan are off the hook. Japan then win a penalty almost immediately after for a late tackle by Jonny May.

Japan seem rattled as they commit another foul this time for a tackle off the ball. Ford opts to kick for the posts but it’s a long effort to make.

It’s simple for the England fly-half who converts the try with ease.

England use their physicality after winning a lineout five metres from the try line to put Ludlam in the pocket after a pick and go and he bulldozes his way over the try line. Great response.

The Japan number 10 makes no mistake and kicks well from the left-hand side of the pitch. Japan are now in front, can England respond?

A Japan lineout ends with Ben Earl being pinged for offside and that gives Matsuda another chance to kick for three more points.

Water break in Nice as players are given a few minutes to replenish and get fluids onboard. It’s currently 25 degrees in the ground.

England get away with one as Ford’s kick is charged down by Matsuda and suddenly Japan have a chance to score. Mitchell recovers well and Lewis Ludlam does brilliantly to chase back and seal off at the ruck.

England have a scrum midway through their own half and hooker Jamie George can be heard shouting at his team-mates to ‘get physical’. They do exactly that and win the scrum.

All square as Japan’s kick directly in front of the post is sent through the uprights. Easy kick for Matsuda and that will wake England up a bit.

Japan’s interception from that England maul kickstarts a dynamite attack that has England’s defence scrambling. They have an advantage and go for the spectacular but it is hit just too long.

Brillian tfrom England as they surge deep into the Japanese half with a huge maul. They then immediately waste it as Mitchell’s pass is poor and Japan intercept before making yards of their own. End-to-end.

England string a few passes together around the halfway line and break down the left. Daly does well but then knocks the ball on as he is tackled and Japan kick the resulting penalty back upfield.

It’s an early enforced change for Japan as Masirewa concedes he won’t be able to continue and Lomano Lemecki comes on to replace him.

The England full-back finds touch from his own half and that puts Japan under pressure from a lineout. Meanwhile there is concern for Masirewa who has gone down holding his thigh.

The decision to kick wasn’t well supported by England fans in the ground but it gets early points on the board as Ford easily kicks the penalty,

England have a few phases after the scrum and get an advantage for offside. Play is then called back and Ford will kick for the points.

Daly’s kick should be collected comfortably but Masirewa gets it all wrong and knocks the ball on. England win their scrum five metres out.

George Ford gets us started and we are underway in Nice for this Rugby World Cup clash. Stick with us throughout for every big moment.

CHRIS FOY IN NICE: As the teams are coming out, there are quite a lot of empty seats still. Maybe fans are having trouble getting into the stadium, as was the case last week – but there is no way of knowing from inside as it is a sealed arena, with no exterior views.

The great news if you’re cheering on England is that Japan have never won this fixture before.

Tonight is the fourt meeting between the two sides and Japan will be hoping to turn the odds on world rugby’s biggest stage.

England ran out 52-13 winners when they last played Japan at Twickenham in 2022.

The England fly-half was instrumental to success against Argentina and will be tasked with grabbing tonight’s match by the scruff of the neck in a similar fashion.

It would be a surprise to see Ford deploy the same drop-kicking tactic tonight but if he is given creative licence then expect fireworks from the fly-half.

We are just 15 minutes away from kick off in Nice as players finish their warm-ups and head back to the changing rooms. The stadium is filling up nicely and there will be an almighty atmosphere when the players next emerge onto the pitch.

NIK SIMON IN NICE: One thing that struck me in the media centre is the number of Japanese journalists who have travelled over.

They have arrived in force, outnumbering the English contingent despite the 14-hour flight. It’s an indication of how much the game’s popularity has grown in Japan after the 2015 and 2019 World Cups.

There will be plenty of fans setting their alarms for 4am Tokyo time to tune in.

Tom Curry’s red card against Argentina ensures he will play no part tonight as he serves a two-match ban for his tackle on Juan Cruz Mallia.

Curry will miss tonight’s match and the next group game against Chile.

CHRIS FOY IN NICE: England are warming up here in Nice and they have been practising plenty of long kicks.

Elliot Daly has drilled over a few shots from beyond the halfway line – with room to spare – and Freddie Steward has even joined in with some successful strikes from distance. Head coach Steve Borthwick is observing the forwards, but leaving his assistants to put the players through their paces.

NIK SIMON: With the thump of tennis balls providing a steady beat in the background, George Ford is talking about Roger Federer. England moved south this week to the Mouratoglou Tennis Academy, where Grand Slam champions are taught all about remaining calm and in control.

‘I’ve been fortunate enough to watch Wimbledon a couple of times and seen some five-set matches,’ says Ford, taking in the surroundings where Serena Williams trained for the best part of a decade.

READ THE FULL STORY BELOW

Kick off is under one hour away as both teams prepare to lock horns at the Rugby World Cup. Steve Borthwick’s side will wear their black kit for tonight’s clash.

Japan head coach Jamie Joseph has also named a strong side to take on England with four changes to his starting team. Kazuki Himeno will captain his first RWC clash while Michael Leitch will become the nation’s most capped World Cup player on his 15th appearance.

STARTING XV: Masirewa; Matsushima, Osada, Nakamura, Naikabula; Matsuda, Nagare; Inagaki, Horie, Gu, Cornelsen, Fakatava, Leitch, Labuschagne, Himeno (capt)

Replacements: Sakate, Millar, Ai Valu, Dearns, Shimokawa, Saito, Riley, Lemeki.

England head coach Steve Borthwick has largely kept the faith from the team that beat Argentina last time out by making three changes with Lewis Ludlam starting at No.8, Ben Earl shifting to openside flanker, and Kyle Sinckler at tighthead.

STARTING XV: Steward; May, Marchant, Tuilagi, Daly; Ford, Mitchell; Marler, George, Sinckler, Itoje, Chessum, Lawes (capt), Earl, Ludlam.

Replacements: Dan, Genge, Stuart, Martin, Vunipola, Youngs, Smith, Lawrence.

Good evening and welcome to the Nice stadium for tonight’s Rugby World Cup clash between England and Japan. Kick-off is at 8pm but we have so much to cover before then.

The home side are being denied much of the ball and the plan from Steve Clarke looks to be play on the counter-attack. England will have to make a mistake for Scotland to get a chance and so far they look comfortable.

Scotland are being forced to defend deep as England win corners in quick succession. Guehi goes down in the box but there wasn’t much in it and play continues.

England look to have settled quickly and are playing with confidence as they control possession in the early exchanges. Scotland reverting to a back-five when England have the ball.

Man City right-back Kyle Walker wins the first corner of the match and it’s played deep into Declan Rice. The Arsenal midfielder looks to clip a return cross to the back-post but Gunn comes off his line to punch clear.

The England skipper was found dropping deep against Ukraine last time out but is trying to make a couple of early runs in behind here. Something for Scotland’s defence to be wary of.

The hosts get the ball rolling and we are underway. Raw emotion on show and this is going to be a cracker.

England’s national anthem is played first and plenty of boo’s echo around Hampden Park to the point that you can barely hear ‘God save the King’ being played as a host of Scottish supporters make their feelings heard.

Traveling England fans try to do the same when the Scotland national anthem plays but are drowned out.

We are just five minutes from getting underway inside Hampden Park as the players return to their dressing rooms. There is going to be an almighty roar from both sets of supporters in a moment. Strap in and stick with us throughout the match.

The England manager has been speaking pre-match on Channel 4 and has admitted tonight will be a ‘hostile’ test for the Three Lions.

Southgate stated: ‘There’s so much histroy to the game and a great test for us in a really hostile environment. Scotland are playing well and it’s a really good challenge.

‘We are trying to find the balance of stability, expeirence and we have to do that in the course of the next few months but also some freshness in the team so a lot of different objectives.’

On the 150th anniversary of the oldest rivalry in world football, we have delved into the Daily Mail archives to bring you these classic images of Scotland versus England at Hampden Park.

Take a look for yourself below ahead of kick-off.

Scotland haven’t beaten England in this tie since before the turn of the Millenium, but tonight is probably their best chance since then.

The hosts have plenty of Premier League firepower in their ranks and are one of Europe’s most in-form nations after winning their opening five European Championship qualifying matches.

Their midfield boasts a plethora of talent in McTominay, McGinn and Gilmour and although it perhaps isn’t at the same level as England’s midfield, they have shown they are more than capable of scoring.

Southgate’s decision to play with a double midfield pivot with Rice and Phillips shows England are wary of the danger and Jude Bellingham will be the man responsible for adding creativity from deep.

The hosts will have most of their attention focused on England tonight but will also have one eye on events unfolding on the other side of the North Sea.

Norway are taking on Georgia in a Group A European Championship quaifying match and a draw will see Scotland become the first team to qualify for next year’s competition in Germany.

We’ll keep you updated on how things are progressing in that game.

England players are first out for their warm-ups and have emerged to raucous boos inside Hampden Park. The seats are already filling out and we are 40 minutes away from kick-off.

There is going to be a cracking atmosphere inside the stadium as two fierce rivals lock horns once again and England will need to silence this crowd early or it could be a long evening.

Tonight celebrates the 150th anniversary of the first meeting between sport’s oldest rivals and to honour the moment both teams are wearing iconic celebration shirts to mark the occasion.

England’s no-thrills design features a plain white old style top with the iconic Three Lions having a crown placed on top of the badge and the date 1872 inscribed beneath.

Take a look for yourself below!

It might only be a friendly, but FIFA president Gianni Infantino is in town and soaking up the atmosphere at Hampden Park. The FIFA head spared the expensive luxuries as he jetted into Glasgow on an easyJet flight for tonight’s match.

Steve Clarke has named an unchanged team from the side that eased past Cyprus in a 3-0 victory last time out.

Scotland supporters will be looking to Manchester United’s Scott McTominay to continue his terrific goalscoring run that see’s him joint lead the European Championship qualifying goalscoring charts with six strikes so far.

England will also have to be wary of the threats posed from midfield by Billy Gilmour and John McGinn.

STARTING XI: Gunn, Hickey, Robertson, McTominay, Tierney, McGinn, McGregor, Adams, Hendry, Gilmour, Porteous

England manager Gareth Southgate has named a strong line-up to take on Scotland, but it perhaps isn’t the strongest he could have named.

There are rare starts for Lewis Dunk and Kalvin Phillips, while Phil Foden is also pulled back into the fray. Declan Rice will partner Phillips in a midfield pivot that shows Southgate is wary of Scotland’s attack.

Jordan Henderson and Harry Maguire both drop to the bench while Bukayo Saka joins them amongst the subs as well.

STARTING XI: Ramsdale, Walker, Guehi, Dunk, Trippier, Rice, Phillips, Foden, Bellingham, Rashford, Kane.

Good evening and thanks for joining us for the 150th meeting of football’s oldest rivals. Tonight may be classed as a friendly but this will be anything but that as the two sides clash at Hampden Park in front of a baying crowd. Kick-off is at 7.45pm.

48′ – We know what Argentina are capable of, but they’re not shwoing it tonight and silly mistakes are making their hopes turn to dust so far.

Seven handling errors from Michael Cheika’s side compared to England’s two. On the world stage, the finest of margins are going to win games and you can’t be giving the ball up so easily.

46′ – George Ford has hit 15 points for the night as he converts another penalty to rub salt in the wounds of Argentina.

Steve Borthwick’s men have started this half in the vein they left off and that’s exactly what they need to do. A 12-point lead is more comfortable but keeping the pressure on is a good idea.

45′ – Lawes has been immense leading England tonight and gets on the end of a deflected kick from Earl.

42′ – Ben Earl breaks away from the first scrum after the break and England are looking to make progress up the pitch. Carreras goes over the top of Jonny May in the air after a kick up and it’s not a clea catch.

Despite the euphoria suddenly enveloping England, there will be one man coming away from the first half feeling rather hard done by: Tom Curry.

His collision with Juan Cruz Mallia has inevitably sparked debate but there’s a certainly a valid argument to say he should not have been dismissed.

As pictured, it left Mallia worse for wear. And that’s how Argentina are looking as a whole after a stellar performance from England, who have really grown into the game.

‘What a half from England. They go off to an ovation, which is richly deserved. They not only showed character in adversity; they were canny too. George Ford has had this game in the palm of his hand so far – or on the top of his right boot to be more accurate. The second drop goal was astonishing. Courtney Lawes has been immense too and all the players are rising to this big occasion. How refreshing to witness such a positive English performance after a summer of setbacks and frustrations.’

Half-time is upon us and it’s hard not to be speechless at what we’ve just seen.

George Ford has stolen the show. England close out the half winning the scrum and looked well on top here.

39′ – Argentina have not made any use of the extra man here. They’re hardly getting up the pitch anymore after a decent start.

37′ – Can you believe what we’re seeing here?

After going a man down, England have transformed into a super combative and flair-filled side. And George Ford is at the centre of it all.

Yet another drop goal for Ford, his third of the night and a joint-English record.

‘What England have already succeeded in doing here is getting their fans right behind them with this spirited effort in adversity. The noise when George Ford just landed a second drop goal – from halfway – was deafening. England have Argentina rattled, ever since the turnover penalty won by Courtney Lawes in front of his own posts. At the moment, this is heroic.’

Chris Foy is one of our correspondents in the Stade Velodrome tonight.

31′ – again he’s at it! The man loves a drop goal, and so do England Ford hits it over from 50 metres out and puts England 9-3 ahead.

28′ – against expectations, England take the lead with a drop goal from Ford!

25′ – Mitchell tries a kick but once again it doesn’t have the accuracy and Argentina reclaim the ball unchallenged. England are kicking a lot tonight, but not to much avail.

24′ – Argentina get going again but England defend well and get their hands on the ball. Big moment from Courtney Lawes there.

23′ There’s a potential knock-on from Argentina’s Thomas Gallo after they came furiously close to scoring a try. It’s under review.

22′ – Argentina win a turnover and kick into the corner, right on England’s line. This is a threat.

‘What a chaotic start to this match and now England find themselves in a hole after Curry’s red card. But this sort of scenario has tended to bring the best out of them in the last couple of years so they need to resurrect that defiant streak here. They have certainly found a slight semblance of attacking rhythm in the last few minutes, with 14 men.’

20′ – Ford probed with a kick but it’s too long and Argentina catch.

Play is stopped as Carreras comes back on and his card has not been upgraded.

19′ – England have shown a bit of pace and industry in attack there and made some inroads into Argentina. Ben Earl kicks lightly forward for a chase but the attack breaks down.

15′ – with the ball on the half-way line and Argentina one man down on the backs with Carreras under card review, there is a lot of space here for England to exploit.

And… it results in a free-kick for Argentina.

12′ – having lost their openside flanker in Tom Curry, England will have to adapt fast as they find themselves on the painful end of a dismissal.

That’s the first red card at the World Cup.

Tom Curry has bene dismissed ten minutes in after he was upgraded to a red card.

Ford converts his penalty with both teams currently down to 14.

9′ – Santiago Carreras slammed into George Ford and the foul play review officer is busy. That looked awful.

He’s been given a yellow but it could be upgraded.

7′ – England gave away another penalty – you can’t do that against Boffelli as he’s so good over the ball – but in a rare moment of grace he spares England’s blushes with a miss.

Emiliano Boffelli scores a penalty and after a bright start for England. they’re down 3-0.

Juan Cruz Mallia has received treatment after a head collisiion between him and Tom Curry.

There’s a card review for Curry. He’s been given a yellow but it could be upgraded to a red.

England capitalise on a misplaced chip over from Argentina and Freddie Steward kicks upfield to try and get Steve Borthwick’s men on the front foot.

Argentina haven’t done much so far and it has been a solid start from England with the Pumas forced to kick to try and break through.

Argentina get us going as chants ring around the Stade Velodrome.

Now it’s time for God Save the King.

The players are out, the national anthems are coming on, and the excitement is palpable.

It’s a choir rendition of Argentina’s national anthem to start us off.

Finally we can bring you some photos of what we’re all hoping for this tournament – England fans having a great time.

Here you can see some of our committed travellers mingling with rival supporters and enjoying drinks.

One can only hope the others stuck outside get in with minimal trouble from here on out.

Fans have been telling Chris Foy of their experiences outside the stadium in the build-up to England vs Argentina.

One England fan who had to endure a long, fraught battle to enter the stadium said: ‘Just got to our seats. It was an abject disaster. No signage. No people to direct – 67,000 people funnelled through a single staircase. Elbows everywhere. And then when you get inside, the sections are poorly labelled. We found ours by accident.’

Argentina head coach Michael Cheika has given his thoughts ahead of the game. Cheika has had a varied career across both codes of rugby and now he’s back at the World Cup with a different team.

‘I feel extremely connected to this bunch of guys, he said, speaking of his adaptation into the Pumas community. ‘I feel part of the family. It’s great to be here with them.’

Fans and journalists outside the ground are sending in their images and footage as they struggle to make progress into the ground.

Here’s a video from another Twitter user.

Chris Foy has written: ‘Hope they sort this mess out soon. Hordes of fans trying to enter the stadium and the crush is getting worse. Just saw one guy who had made it through the gates punching the air in relief.’

‘Serious problems outside the stadium here with thousands of fans stuck in big crushes to come through security checks at the gates. Judging by the current, chaotic scenes, not everyone will make it inside in time for kick-off in 25 minutes. No word yet about the start of the game being pushed back though.’

Here’s another look at the chaos outside the stadium.

If you want more of our coverage of the Rugby World Cup, you can check out Nik Simon and Kevin Quigley’s series ‘Croqued’, a fun and informative take on their travels covering this tournament in France, packed with rugby chat and insight.

As you can see, one of the entrances to the Stade Velodrome is packed with just half an hour to go to kick-off.

Courtney Lawes has spoken about the honour of captaining England as he leads them out in what is his fourth World Cup campaign.

‘It’s huge for me, a big honour. I just want to do my best for the boys and the people at home supporting us. It’s a really exciting weekend. We’ve had a really good training week and we’re looking forward to getting stuck in.

We have to be defensively and physically sound. We have to match [Argentina] up front first and foremost. And we have a game plan put in place which will suit our strengths and give us plenty of options.

There’s definitely frustration. We feel it as much as anybody. We’re in the thick of it. We’re doing everything we can to make sure come this weekend we are firing on all cylinders.’

Mail Sport columnist and former World Cup winner Sir Clive Woodward has just told ITV Sport: ‘I think it’d be an upset if we win tonight.’

Argentina present a unique challenge as one of the most fiery teams in rugby and won at Twickenham last year 30-29. don’t take them lightly.

Maro Itoje has issued some defiant words ahead of tonight’s clash.

Steve Borthwick has lost six of his first nine games in charge of England but Itoje, who starts in the second row tonight, insists that England know their quality.

‘We know who we are, we know the type of players we have, we know the quality of coaches we have,’ he said.

‘We haven’t played as well as we can, but we know the potential of this group, you know the attitude of the players and the coaches and it can only fill you with confidence.

‘We want to be part of something special and that starts this weekend.

‘We’ve seen how England get behind their national teams and we want to produce rugby that will get the country behind us.’

Finally they’re on the turf. The World Cup opener for England is less than an hour away! Four years we’ve waited, and now you can almost taste it.

Now for a look at Argentina’s starting XV for this clash.

Julian Montoya is the headline name and captain in the front row, also skippering Leicester Tigers. He’s powerful and has been named in the Gallagher Premiership team of the season twice in a row.

Marcos Kremer is back after a ban. He turns out for Clermont in the club season and has 57 Argentina caps to his name.

It’s no secret that England World Cup build-up has been rocked by a pile-on of issues. Once a slick operation, England go into this World Cup with pessimistic talk surrounding them.

There have been bans, injuries, a first-ever loss to Fiji, and so much more. For a team that reached the final under Eddie Jones in 2019, anything that could have gone wrong has gone wrong, writes Kieran Lynch.

Check out Mail Sport’s Rugby page elsewhere on our website to read his report.

This is what the centre of operations ahead of kick-off for each team tonight.

In the middle image, you can see the jerseys of Manu Tuilagi, who starts at inside centre; George Ford, who is at fly-half; and Alex Mitchell at No 6.

England have a good record against Argentina, having won 19 of 25 encounters, but try telling these South American fans that the history books matter.

They’ve turned out in full force and Argentine regalia for this one. One thing is for sure: whatever happens on the field, there is going to be a firecracker of an atmosphere in the Stade Velodrome tonight.

Steve Borthwick has the hopes of a nation resting on his shoulders and will know that his team selection will set the tone for the rest of the tournament.

Alex Mitchell is handed a surprise start at No 9 after a whirlwind few weeks. The Northampton Saints man wasn’t even included in Borthwick’s initial squad for the tournament, but the withdrawal of Jack Van Poortvliet led to his inclusion and now he starts ahead of Danny Care and Ben Youngs for his seventh cap.

Courtney Lawes captains the team from No 6 in the absence of Owen Farrell, having picked up his 100th cap against Fiji.

Jonny May is also on the wing – he also wasn’t included in the original 33-man squad.

Here is England’s line-up for their World Cup opener.

Good evening and welcome to Mail Sport’s live blog as England commence their Rugby World Cup campaign against Argentina.

The Stade Velodrome in Marseille, an absolute cauldron of a venue, will play host to tonight’s occasion as Steve Borthwick’s men look to put their recent woes behind them.

Kick-off is at 8pm and here at Mail Sport we’ll be bringing you all the build-up, live action, and reaction.