England sweat on Marcus Smith for Boks semifinal

England are sweating on the fitness of star utility back Marcus Smith before their Rugby World Cup semifinal against South Africa in Paris on Saturday.

For now, England's prognosis on the player is rosy. “Yes, he is good. We will get a clearer read in the week but fingers crossed he will be good to go,” said Kevin Sinfield, the Roses' defence coach.

Smith, a regular flyhalf who started his second Test at fullback in Saturday's quarterfinal win over Fiji, did not take part in training on Tuesday after receiving a few bangs to the head in Marseille.

Jonny May, Tom Curry and Manu Tuilagi were also on modified training routines before Saturday's semifinal.

Should Smith not recover in time, Freddie Steward looks set to resume his association with the England No 15 jersey. While he will provide size and greater assurance under the high ball, an area the Springboks were happy to explore against France, England can do with the zip and unpredictability Smith offers in attack.

“We’d all agree he’s a world class [No] 10, but last week he was a world class 15 as well,” Sinfield said.

“You’ve got to remember this guy has played [230] minutes as a fullback in Test rugby so far. What he’s done on the training field has been outstanding. You’re blown away by what he does and he’s been given more time and space now.

“If there was any doubt how brave and courageous he is you saw it with your own eyes. The bloke got his face smashed and threw his body into tackles.”

Should England be pressed into changes, it will not be a deviation from what they've done under head coach Steve Borthwick. He is yet to name an unchanged line-up since taking the job.

The last time the teams clashed, the Boks were perhaps indirectly responsible for opening the door for Borthwick to take the job. Their 27-13 victory over England at Twickenham was the final nail in erstwhile coach Eddie Jones' coffin.

Jones was also in charge when the Boks beat England in the 2019 final.

Sinfield talked down the prospect of England using their 2019 defeat as a collective rallying point for the semifinal.

“It is probably down to the individual. Some will use it and some won't be bothered at all because a lot has changed in four years.

“I know they have a lot of continuity in their coaching team and a lot of their players, but we're in 2023 now.”

England, it has been suggested a few times, have adopted a siege mentality after being so roundly written off before the tournament and now before the semifinal against the defending champions.

“I'm not too bothered,” said Sinfield. “It doesn't matter to me. Stuff outside in August [during their warm-up Tests] we took on the chin and I think in the five or six weeks we have been together we have made huge improvements.

“We know we need to improve again for the weekend to try to get the job done.”

Though they had the highest tackle completion rate of the teams involved in the quarterfinals, England were at times found wanting by Fiji. Sinfield knows South Africa carries similar potency in their back division.

“The back three, whoever they pick, have got real gas and pace. For us, this week, it’s about getting the balance right between understanding what South Africa do, how they play, but also about our strengths as well.

“It would be easy for us to be completely blown away by how good they are. There will be some individuals we will prepare for.

“I won’t share who, but they are a well-drilled outfit and if we spend a load of time focusing on one player, someone else would burn us.

“We understand they are a good unit and we need to be at our best.”