World Cup winner Matt Dawson backs Fin Smith to get England nod for huge All Blacks Test

The Northampton number 10 was recalled to the starting XV for last weekend's clash with Fiji, and produced a controlling performance to steer England to a 38-18 win.

Smith replaced George Ford at fly-half, with the Sale Sharks man having started the previous week's win over Australa, with his other rival for the 10 shirt, Marcus Smith, selected at full-back.

The trio are all vying to be head coach Steve Borthwick's first pick to be England's playmaker, and Dawson believes Saints star Smith proved with his performance against a strong Fiji side that he is ahead of his rivals.

Writing in his regular BBC Sport column, Dawson - who played at scrum-half for Saints between 1991 and 2004 and was part of England’s World Cup- winning team of 2003 - said: "Fin Smith delivered arguably the best defensive display we have seen from an England fly-half in several years.

"How he fronted up by consistently making his tackles against a physical Fiji side was impressive.

"His game management was also immense - he showed an excellent balance of finesse and control, and made some strong decisions when things were not going to plan in the first half.

"His ability to calm the team strategically and make big calls is something he has really nailed.

"In my opinion, Fin Smith is England's number one fly-half and he should start against New Zealand.

"I think head coach Steve Borthwick sees it that way as well, because Fin has proven he can perform in big Test matches.

"George Ford started against Australia for leadership reasons, and part of that decision was to provide continuity and reward his form from the tour of Argentina (Smith was with the British & Irish Lions in Australia).

"But England's performance against Fiji was a significant step up from the performance against Australia.

"The Wallabies lost in Italy on Saturday, so we should not get too carried away with that win, which should have been by a larger margin given how off the pace Australia were.

"Fiji, on the other hand, were much more threatening and presented a far tougher challenge.

"Fin Smith is still only 23 - looking ahead two years, with Ford challenging him but also offering support, I think Fin will be in a very strong place as a player.

"Marcus Smith also has to be considered as an option at the right time and against the right opposition. He is developing as a player and is starting to find his feet, but he also needs the freedom to show his unique qualities."

Like England, New Zealand will arrive at Twickenham on Saturday off the back of two wins in the previous two weeks, following up their win over Ireland in Chicago with a nervy 25-17 win over Scotland at Murrayfield.

The victory over Fiji means England have now won nine internationals in a row, and it was a success that featured six Saints players.

Smith was joined in the starting XV by club-mates Tommy Freeman, Fraser Dingwall, Alex Mitchell and Alex Coles, with Henry Pollock coming off the bench in the second half.

All six will be hoping to be involved against the All Blacks on Saturday.