"Farewell Match" - England vs Argentina: Predicting Borthwick's Squad for Bronze Medal World Cup Match

England lost by the narrowest of margins to the Springboks, after controlling a lead for the majority of the contest. England were nine points ahead with 10 minutes to go, before RG Snyman powered over to score a late Springboks try. South Africa still trailed by two points, yet were awarded a scrum-penalty just inside the England half, with two minutes left on the clock.

Replacement fly-half Handre Pollard stepped up to hammer the final nail into England's coffin, with his stunning penalty clinching a last-ditch win for South Africa. England were understandably devastated at the final whistle, with a brawl breaking out once referee Ben O'Keefe called for the end of the match. England need to regain their composure ahead of this weekend, as they take on Argentina for a second time in the 2023 Rugby World Cup.

Los Pumas find themselves in the third-place decider, after taking a heavy semi-final defeat to the All Blacks. New Zealand sent Argentina packing in a rather unceremonious 44-6 win, in a devastating display of attacking ruthlessness, ahead of this Saturday's Rugby World Cup Final. Argentina and England end their time in France as they started, with this weekend's Bronze Medal match a repeat of the Pool D opener from seven weeks previous.

England got the better of an albeit poor Argentine side last month, with a 27-10 victory kick-starting their campaign in Marseille. George Ford slotted each of England's points from the boot, including a magnificent hat-trick of drop goals. Despite this being the match no team wants to find themselves in, the bronze medals are on the line, and Borthwick will need to make some key selection choices for the match.

Here are RUCK's Predictions, for the England team to play Argentina in the Rugby World Cup Bronze Medal match.

This predicted team is going to have a running theme of looking to the next generation, and our predicted England back-three starts off on this trend. After marking his sole Rugby World Cup appearance with five tries against Chile, England fans are clambering to see Henry Arundell back in the starting line-up. The Racing 92 man would benefit from the tough Argentine opposition, with a chance to prove his skillset against top-tier international opponents.

We believe that Freddie Steward will return to the fullback spot, due to the uncertainty around Marcus Smith's fitness status. Smith was left out of the Semi-Final after being left battered and bruised by Fiji, with Steward also picked for a tactical gain against the Springboks arial bombardment. We've gone for Jonny May to occupy the left wing, with the Gloucester winger looking to extend his record as England's top active try-scorer in what could be one of his last run-outs for his country.

13. Ollie Lawrence (Bath Rugby)

We saw a glimpse of this midfield partnership in the England's hard-hitting quarter-final victory over Fiji, with Lawrence joining Tuilagi in the midfield for the final half an hour. An interesting duo that utilises out-and-out power up the centre channel, the Tuilagi-Lawrence partnership could well punch holes through the aggressive Pumas defence. This match could also provide a key torch-passing moment from Tuilagi to Lawrence, with the Sale Sharks man rumoured to call time on his international career after the World Cup.

England will soon have a new-look midfield to that of their Rugby World Cup campaign, with Tuilangi's pending swan-song coupled with Joe Marchant's upcoming move to Stade Francais. Marchant has been a star-man of Borthwick's campaign, yet puts his international future in jeopardy with a move to the French Top 14. We've opted for Marchant on the bench in the Bronze Medal match, to cover for either centre or wing against Argentina.

The fly-half spot has been tough area of contention once again, with George Ford more than proving his capabilities against Argentina in the Pool D opener. However, this match is in no way a 'dead-rubber' contest, with Borthwick likely to select his captain at fly-half to bring home the Bronze Medals. Ford waits in the wings as he did against South Africa, with Owen Farrell our pick to start in the 10 jersey.

As for Farrell's halfback partner, this was another tough call. We believe that Borthwick will look to the future in his selections, and give tournament-breakthrough Alex Mitchell another start against Argentina. The Northampton Saints man has been Borthwick's first choice scrum-half for the World Cup, with veterans Danny Care and Ben Youngs pushed out to the replacements. Care and Youngs could likely call time on their international tenures not too long after the World Cup, and we've picked Youngs on the bench to end his Rugby World Cup career as it began in 2011, in a replacement run out against Los Pumas.

We will see a changing of the guard in the front-row after the Rugby World Cup, with Joe Marler and Dan Cole expected to be out of the England fold as Borthwick looks to the future of his side. The two veteran props were fantastic against South Africa, and have been named on our bench for one last ride in the Bronze Medal match against Argentina. We predict Borthwick to reverse his picks for the semi-final, and start Ellis Genge and Kyle Sinckler from the get go.

The two Bristol props were amongst the 'Borth Squad', that ran on against the Springboks as Rassie Erasmus emptied his bench. As for the hooker, Jamie George is our predicted pick to once again lead the way, as England eye up Bronze medals to close out their campaign. George has been one of England's hardest workers on the pitch, missing just 16 minutes of World Cup action and the walkover against Chile. Theo Dan waits patiently on the touchline once again, having watched his Saracens mentor as a three-time unused replacement.

Steve Borthwick gave George Martin the nod to start against South Africa, having made four previous replacement appearances behind Ollie Chessum at the World Cup. We seem to have entered a power struggle for the number five jersey, with Martin amongst England's top performers in their losing effort against the Springboks. The 22-year-old made an immense tackling effort against the bruising South Africans, before getting a well-earned break in way for his Leicester Tigers teammate.

Maro Itoje looks set to retain his number four jersey once again, in our predicted line-up for the Bronze Medal Final. The Saracen has silenced the critics throughout this World Cup campaign, and has hit his stride with some key work at the breakdown. Despite being one of England's more experienced heads, Itoje is by no means stepping down from his country after the World Cup, and would want nothing more than a bronze-tinted send off for his long-time compatriots.

This match against Argentina will mark the final England match in the decorated career of Courtney Lawes. It has been confirmed that the Northampton Saints man will call time on his international career after the Rugby World Cup, with over 100 test caps to his name for England, and as a two-time British & Irish Lion. We've picked Lawes to start on the blindside for one more run-out as vice-captain, to end an iconic career in the red rose.

Alongside Lawes is Tom Curry on the open-side flank, who will be after redemption following his second minute red card against Argentina in the World Cup opener. Curry has been emptying the tank in every appearance in France, with another strong outing set to gain him favour ahead of the 2024 Six Nations. Ben Earl is out choice to pack down the scrum, with Borthwick again looking to the future with Billy Vunipola likely entering the end of his England career. Earl has been nothing short of awesome in France, with one more big shift set to nail his name to Borthwick's future back-row.