By Matt Findlay

Leading into the 2015 Rugby World Cup (RWC) there’s been few teams spoken about as often, or as negatively, as the host nation.

Head coach Stuart Lancaster made what many consider some dicey decisions in leaving out Nick Easter, Danny Cipriani, Luther Burrell and Billy Twelvetrees, particularly considering the inclusions of Owen Farrell and Sam Burgess instead.

But, Lancaster still has plenty of depth in his squad and his side followed up a disappointing warm-up loss to France with a strong performance against Ireland, winning the latter 21-13.

Despite being exposed at the breakdown, lineout and, surprisingly, scrum time against France, Lancaster said he is confident England will go deep into the tournament.

In the pool of death, England will play Australia, Wales, Fiji and Uruguay, but there’s one factor in particular giving him said confidence – Twickenham, where England plays three of its four group games.

“If we play at Twickenham like we played against Ireland, we are going to be a hard team to beat,” Lancaster said.

“It was a big step up from France but we are keeping our feet on the ground. We are not jumping up and down because we know the real stuff is starting on Friday.

“Selection wasn’t easy and it is tough to leave anyone out but it’s important to stress that the players not in this group are still part of our wider squad and could come in at any point.”

England opens its campaign against the enigmatic Fijians on Friday.

 PLAYER TO WATCH: Sam Burgess (inside centre/flanker)

He’s six foot four, 115kg, only played 16 games for Bath and barely any Test Matches, and no one’s really sure if he’s a flanker or a centre yet.

Yep, you guessed it, England’s player to watch is Sam Burgess – obviously.

The most polarising inclusion in any of the RWC squads, Burgess is virtually unknown at international level.

His adaptation to the 15-man code after being one of best rugby league players worldwide has been smoother than some would have thought – he’s devastating with ball in hand and for the most part, good defensively, even if his positional play at No.12 leaves a bit to be desired.

But, realistically, who knows what he could do.

 WALLABIES WATCH:

Do England pose a threat to the Wallabies?

Absolutely, the biggest of any nation in pool A.

Plenty are tipping the hosts to progress to the quarter-finals on top of the pool of death, and the latest statistical predictions say as much as well.

Basically, for Australia, that means their clash against England is the biggest of the group stage and should ultimately decide which country finishes first.

However, with England’s scrum somewhat exposed in warm-up games and the Wallabies’ looking strong, the set piece will be crucial in what many expect to be a dour, typical northern hemisphere tournament, and the Australians boast a small mental advantage there.

 SQUAD

Forwards: Kieran Brookes, Dan Cole, Joe Marler, Mako Vunipola, David Wilson, Jamie George, Rob Webber, Tom Youngs, George Kruis, Joe Launchbury, Courtney Lawes, Geoff Parling, James Haskell, Ben Morgan, Chris Robshaw (capt), Billy Vunipola, Tom Wood.

Backs: Danny Care, Richard Wigglesworth, Ben Youngs, Owen Farrell, George Ford, Brad Barritt, Sam Burgess, Jonathan Joseph, Henry Slade, Mike Brown, Alex Goode, Jonny May, Jack Nowell, Anthony Watson.

 FIXTURES

Friday, September 18: vs Fiji; Twickenham, London; 8pm

Saturday, September 26: vs Wales; Twickenham, London; 8pm

Saturday, October 3: vs Australia; Twickenham, London; 8pm

Saturday, October 10: vs Uruguay; Manchester City Stadium, Manchester; 8pm