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Owen Farrell says England expect a 'physical challenge' from South Africa

Owen Farrell will captain the tourists
Image: Owen Farrell will captain the tourists

Owen Farrell says England have the experience to cause South Africa problems in the upcoming three-Test series, which gets underway on Saturday.

England last toured South Africa in 2012, when they only managed to avoid a whitewash by drawing the third and final Test.

But Farrell - who is captaining the squad in the absence of Dylan Hartley - thinks it could be a different story this time.

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"Excited to be in Durban, a brilliant spot, but what we are most excited about is to be here for the rugby, and we are looking forward to building towards this Test match this weekend," he told Sky Sports.

"International rugby is a step up and this is somewhere you come to get better and improve as a player.

"In 2012, I was at a different stage. We had only just got together under Stuart [Lancaster].

"We had an OK Six Nations but we came as a fairly young team and it didn't go as well as it could have.

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"This group has a lot more experience now and we are excited to be here.

"Coming over here, you expect a physical challenge. We have to make sure we are up there with that and we are pretty smart all over the field - and are able to execute at the same time."

Owen Farrell (in front) and Chris Robshaw were part of a beaten England team at Twickenham on Saturday
Image: Farrell and England need to bounce back after a poor end to their Six Nations campaign

Farrell is relishing the prospect of leading the side and added: "Dylan did a fantastic job.

"I shared a room with him throughout that time and saw all the work he put into it.

"First and foremost, I just have to be myself."

Follow the Rose on England's journey to the 2019 Rugby World Cup, starting with their tour to South Africa, live on Sky Sports.

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