Preview: England v France

He will feature for England in a World Cup warm-up match against France at Twickenham on Saturday.

While Saracens star Farrell is hoping to press firmly his own World Cup claims when he regains the white No.10 jersey ahead of George Ford in an experimental side for the latest visit of France, he is also relishing the opportunity to link up with Burgess in the backs.

Burgess, 26, has been fast-tracked into the international set-up after switching codes to play for Bath having helped the South Sydney Rabbitohs win Australian Rugby League's Grand Final.

Several former England union internationals, including Lawrence Dallaglio and Matt Dawson, have questioned the wisdom of picking him at inside centre to partner another debutant in Exeter's Henry Slade in midfield.

Yet Farrell – the son of dual code international Andy, now a member of coach Stuart Lancaster's backroom staff – was not so worried.

"Sam is ready for it," Farrell said.

"He has a big chance to really put himself in the frame for a World Cup spot and he knows it.

"He's a big game player. Just look at his record in rugby league. It was outstanding in both England and Australia.

"He's only been in union a relative short time but he has improved week by week and learnt a lot.

"You just know he will stand up and be counted when it matters," added Farrell, ahead of the August 31 final deadline by which all World Cup squads must be named.

Northampton flank Calum Clark is the other new boy picked by the World Cup hosts who will be anxious to pick up where they left off following a thrilling 55-35 Six Nations victory over France five months ago.

Lancaster's men endured a rigorous high altitude training camp in Denver, Colorado.

"We have been pushing each other hard because it is now about getting into the starting XV for the Fiji game [England's World Cup opener at Twickenham on September 18]," the 23-year-old Farrell said.

England's experienced lock Geoff Parling warned that Twickenham fans may be disappointed if they come expecting a repeat of the Six Nations try-extravaganza between the two sides.

Parling and his teammates missed out on the Six Nations title by a single try as they put France to the sword in that remarkable 90-point thriller at Twickenham.

British and Irish Lion Parling, who joined Exeter from Leicester at the end of last season, said: "I'm not saying it couldn't happen again but it was a special game where we simply had to throw caution to the wind and go for the tries.

"The situation is far different this weekend with players trying to impress and prove they deserve to be in the final World Cup squad."

France are not due to name their side until Friday, a move that could potentially coach Philippe Saint-Andre's side in trouble.

International regulations stipulate teams must be announced at least 72 hours before kick-off, unless there are separate tournament rules in place – which usually set 48 hours as the deadline.

France flank Fulgence Ouedraogo warned against reading too much into this Test or next week's return warm-up fixture between the two sides in Paris.

"You have to be sensible about the conclusions that you arrive at from this match," the 29-year-old Montpellier captain told AFP. "It's always complicated to assess pre-season friendlies.

"There's no sure things to take from these games, only aspects which are going to emerge which will give us an illustration of our game and tell us what we have to work harder on.

"In 2007, France won at Twickenham and then beat England again in France only to lose their first World Cup game against Argentina.

"In 2011 we won our two build-up games against Ireland and our first World Cup game [against Japan].

"On the other hand to lose your warm-up games can serve to add pressure and make one refocus and react against this fear.

"In short, there's no sure things to take from these games, only aspects which are going to emerge which will give us an illustration of our game and tell us what we have to work harder on."

Players to watch:

For England: There is no doubt the spotlight will be firmly on Sam Burgess, given the hype that has surrounded his selection this week. Owen Farrell also have plenty to prove at flyhalf.

For France: The return of flyhalf Francois Trinh-Duc and scrumhalf Morgan Parra will ensure they might steal some of Burgess's spotlight. Louis Picamoles will look ti add some much-needed muscle.

Head to head: The England front row – Kieran Brookes, Rob Webbber and Mako Vunipola – will be tested by any French combination from this collection: Uini Atonio, Xavier Chiocci, Vincent Debaty, Nicolas Mas, Rabah Slimani, Guilhem Guirado and Dimitri Szarzewski.

Recent results:

2015: England won 55-35, London

2014: France won 26-24, Paris

2013: England won 23-13, London

2012: England won 24-22, Paris

2011: France won 19-12, Auckland (World Cup quarterfinal)

2011: England won 17-9, London

2010: France won 12-10, Paris

2009: England won 34-10, London

2008: England won 24-13, Paris

2007: England won 14-9, Paris (World Cup semifinal)

Prediction: Does the result really matter in a warm-up match? Probably not. However, the teams will keep score and England are likely to come out on top in that department – by about 12 points.

Teams:

England: 15 Alex Goode, 14 Anthony Watson, 13 Henry Slade, 12 Sam Burgess, 11 Jonny May, 10 Owen Farrell, 9 Richard Wigglesworth, 8 Ben Morgan, 7 Calum Clark, 6 Tom Wood (captain), 5 Geoff Parling, 4 George Kruis, 3 Kieran Brookes, 2 Rob Webbber, 1 Mako Vunipola.

Replacements: 16 Luke Cowan-Dickie, 17 Alex Corbisiero, 18 David Wilson, 19 Dave Attwood, 20 James Haskell, 21 Danny Care, 22 Danny Cipriani, 23 Billy Twelvetrees.

France: 15 Scott Spedding, 14 Sofiane Guitoune, 13 Remi Lamerat, 12 Alexandre Dumoulin, 11 Brice Dulin, 10 Francois Trinh-Duc, 9 Morgan Parra, 8 Louis Picamoles, 7 Fulgence Ouedroaogo, 6 Yannick Nyanga, 5 Yoann Maestri, 4 Alexandre Flanquart, 3 Nicolas Mas, 2 Dimitri Szarzewski (captain), 2 Vincent Debaty.

Replacements: 16 Guilhem Guirado, 17 Xavier Chiocci, 18 Uini Atonio, 19 Sebastien Vahaamahina, 20 Loann Goujon, 21 Rory Kockott, 22 Remi Tales, 23 Gael Fickou.

Date: Saturday, August 15

Venue: Twickenham Stadium, London

Kick-off: 20.00 (21.00 France, 19.00 GMT)

Expected weather: Thicker cloud and dry with sunny intervals. High of 17°C, low of 9°C

Referee: John Lacey (Ireland)    

Assistant referees: George Clancy (Ireland), Leighton Hodges (Wales)    

TMO: Simon McDowell (Ireland)

Agence France-Presse