Brief previews of the other nine major international games lined up this weekend.

GEORGIA vs FIJI
Saturday, November 24, 11:00 GMT, Tbilisi

The Lelos have made three changes to the pack that bested the Japanese, recalling young Toulon second row Kote Mikautadze, and swapping their hooker and tighthead as Irakli Natriashvili and Davit Kubriashvili get the start. The backs are unchanged. Fiji have replaced Deacon Manu at tighthead and captain with Setefano Somoca, recalled Api Ratuniyarawa at lock, moved Api Naikatini to the flank, and shifted Iliesa Ratuva to the back of the scrum. In the backs big Saula Radidi gets a start along with debutant Aisea Natoga.

Fiji have been abysmal thus far on their northern tour, and there is little to suggest any potential change in their fortunes now. Their scrum improved somewhat against Ireland but they were still manhandled everywhere else and the Georgian forwards are notoriously brutal. This is not the most beastly pack the Lelos have put out, but it is powerful enough to take care of a rattled Fiji. The scrum strength combined with the excellent kicking of Merab Kvirikashvili should be enough to squeak home in the first meeting of these two countries. Georgia by 6.

GEORGIA
Irakli Kiasashvili; Irakli Machkhaneli, Davit Kacharava, Merab Sharikadze, Sandro Todua; Merab Kvirikashvili, Irakli Abuseridze (capt.); Davit Khichagishvili, Irakli Natriashvili, Davit Kubriashvili; Levan Datunashvili, Kote Mikautadze; Shalva Sutiashvili, Viktor Kolelishvili, Mamuka Gorgodze. RES: Shalva Mamukashvili, Mikheil Nariashvili, Davit Zirakashvili, Vakhtang Maisuradze, Beka Bitsadze, Giorgi Begadze, Lasha Khmaladze, Tedo Zibzibadze.

FIJI
Metuisela Talebula; Aisea Natoga, Saula Radidi, Vereniki Goneva, Watisoni Votu; Jonetani Ralulu, Nikola Matawalu; Jerry Yanuyanutawa, Viliame Veikoso, Setefano Somoca (capt.); Leone Nakarawa, Apisalome Ratuniyarawa; Apisai Naikatini, Malakai Ravulo, Iliesa Ratuva. RES: Tale Tuapati, Seremaia Naureure, Manasa Saulo, Josefa Domolailai, Nemani Nagusa, Samu Bola, Kelemedi Bola, Samu Wara.

IRELAND vs ARGENTINA
Saturday, November 24, 14:00 GMT, Dublin

Craig Gilroy has thankfully been rewarded for his hat trick against Fiji with his first international cap, which in itself seems like a minor miracle. The rest of the side is otherwise unchanged from the team that competed well against the Springboks. The Pumas have recalled Juan Martin Hernandez, Gonzalo Camacho, and Santiago Fernandez to the backline, while Maximiliano Bustos earns his first test cap in place of suspended Juan Figallo.

This is a tough one to pick. Ireland were better against South Africa than expected, and effectively fielded an A side against Fiji. Argentina impressed against Wales, and weren’t bad against France, but weren’t great. It has been their longest test season to date and some of the regulars are probably starting to feel the strain a bit. Many of the Irish players have had the week off and should be feeling reasonably refreshed. Ireland takes the victory at home, leaving it late to win by 3.

IRELAND
Simon Zebo; Tommy Bowe, Keith Earls, Gordon D’Arcy, Craig Gilroy; Jonathan Sexton, Conor Murray; Cian Healy, Richardt Strauss, Mike Ross; Donnacha Ryan, Mike McCarthy; Peter O’Mahony, Chris Henry, Jamie Heaslip. RES: Sean Cronin, David Kilcoyne, Michael Bent, Donncha O’Callaghan, Iain Henderson, Eoin Reddan, Ronan O’Gara, Fergus McFadden.

ARGENTINA
Juan Martin Hernandez; Gonzalo Camacho, Marcelo Bosch, Santiago Fernandez, Juan Imhoff; Nicolas Sanchez, Martin Landajo; Marcos Ayerza, Eusebio Guinazu, Maximiliano Bustos; Manuel Carizza, Julio Farias Cabello; Juan Fernandez Lobbe (capt.), Juan Manuel Leguizamon, Leonardo Senatore. RES: Agustin Creevy, Nahuel Lobo, Francisco Gomez Kodela, Tomas Vallejos, Tomas Leonardi, Nicolas Vergallo, Gonzalo Tiesi, Manuel Montero.

ITALY vs AUSTRALIA
Saturday, November 24, 14:00 GMT, Florence

The Italians have made two changes to the side that battled against the All Blacks, beefing up the scrum with Quintin Geldenhuys and Robert Barbieri recalled at lock and openside respectively. Fijian transplant Manoa Vosawai will look to make an impact from the bench. Robbie Deans has extended his arm to a few veterans as Stephen Moore, Drew Mitchell, Brett Sheehan, and Scott Higginbotham all get their first starts on tour.

The Wallabies weren’t very flashy against England but they fought hard and got the job done with the odds stacked heavily against them. That has to count for something, and captain Nathan Sharpe will be asking his men for another big performance to keep the momentum going. The Azzurri must see this as their best chance for an upset in quite some time although that doesn’t mean it’s a very good chance. This one should resemble the game in Rome, with Australia just pulling away over the last fifteen minutes to win by 18.

EDIT: Tatafu Polota-Nau has withdrawn injured, James Hanson takes his place.

ITALY
Andrea Masi; Giovanbattista Venditti, Tommaso Benvenuti, Alberto Sgarbi, Mirco Bergamasco; Luciano Orquera, Edoardo Gori; Andrea Lo Cicero, Leonardo Ghiraldini, Martin Castrogiovanni; Quintin Geldenhuys, Francesco Minto; Alessandro Zanni, Robert Barbieri, Sergio Parisse (capt.). RES: Davide Giazzon, Michele Rizzo, Lorenzo Cittadini, Antonio Pavanello, Simone Favaro, Manoa Vosawai, Tobias Botes, Luke McLean.

AUSTRALIA
Berrick Barnes; Nick Cummins, Adam Ashley-Cooper, Ben Tapuai, Drew Mitchell; Kurtley Beale, Brett Sheehan; Benn Robinson, Stephen Moore, Ben Alexander; Sitaleki Timani, Nathan Sharpe (capt.); Scott Higginbotham, Michael Hooper, Wycliff Palu. RES: James Hanson, James Slipper, Sekope Kepu, Dave Dennis, Liam Gill, Nick Phipps, Mike Harris, Digby Ioane.

ROMANIA vs UNITED STATES
Saturday, November 24, 14:00 GMT, Bucharest

Romania has called in some of their veterans for this match, with Mihaita Lazar and Ovidiu Tonita joining up with the squad after initially being unavailable. Cosmin Ratiu and Alin Coste form a new second row pairing as the rest of the side stays the same. The Eagles have lost Brian Doyle to injury, so Scott LaValla fills in at lock with Peter Dahl stepping up into the flank. Biarritz flyer Takudzwa Ngwenya has finally arrived and with Chris Wyles returning after a week away all of a sudden the backline has a lot more zip to it. Former captain Mike Petri has also been recalled at scrumhalf in place of Robbie Shaw.

Normally you would assume that the United States would have the edge, but their forwards have not been great and have replaced their biggest lock with a lightweight flanker, which does not bode well considering that the scrum is Romania’s biggest asset. The game plan seems to be move the ball wide and try and move that big pack around, which sounds good in theory but if the Oaks can win their own set pieces and make the game into a war of attrition up front, it could be a long day for what is essentially five flankers in the Eagle back five. Romania will be superior in the tight, and will be inspired playing in front of their home crowd. Take the Oaks in a slight upset by 5.

ROMANIA
Catalin Fercu; Madalin Lemnaru, Ionel Cazan, Csaba Gal, Ionut Botezatu; Andrei Filip, Florin Surugiu; Petru Tamba, Otar Turashvili, Mihaita Lazar; Cosmin Ratiu, Alin Coste; Vasile Rus, Mihai Macovei (capt.), Ovidiu Tonita. RES: Andrei Radoi, Vlad Badalicescu, Horatiu Pungea, Alexandru Manta, Viorel Lucaci, Grigoras Diaconescu, Ionut Florea, Constantin Gheara.

UNITED STATES
Chris Wyles; Takudzwa Ngwenya, Paul Emerick, Andrew Suniula, Luke Hume; Toby L’Estrange, Mike Petri; Shawn Pittman, Chris Biller, Eric Fry; Scott LaValla, Louis Stanfill; John Quill, Peter Dahl, Todd Clever (capt.). RES: Derek Asbun, Nick Wallace, Zach Fenoglio, Graham Harriman, Inaki Basauri, Robbie Shaw, Roland Suniula, Zach Pangelinan.

ENGLAND vs SOUTH AFRICA
Saturday, November 24, 14:30 GMT, London

There is no room for complacency in the England camp these days, as Stuart Lancaster has moved swiftly to quell any thoughts of underperforming by dropping five players from the team that lost to the Wallabies. Tom Wood starts for the first time since the World Cup, Joe Launchbury starts for the first time ever, and Alex Corbisiero returns from injury. Other changes see recalls for Mike Brown, Ben Youngs, and Ben Morgan, while Mouritz Botha and Jonathan Joseph are added to the reserves. The Springboks, in the meantime, have retained the same starting lineup of a week ago, with the additions of reserves Patric Cilliers and Elton Jantjies the only changes.

The form guide, and indeed recent history, indicates that this one should be a ferocious battle with little separating either team. England lost the test series in June, but did manage a draw in the finale and were never that far off in any of the games. Both teams have evolved somewhat since then, yet plenty of players remain in the sides which should make the collisions particularly tasty. These matches are always difficult to call but expect England to lift their game from last week and finally put one over on the Boks for the first time since 2006, just edging their way to a 2 point win.

ENGLAND
Alex Goode; Chris Ashton, Manu Tuilagi, Brad Barritt, Mike Brown; Toby Flood, Ben Youngs; Alex Corbisiero, Tom Youngs, Dan Cole; Joe Launchbury, Geoff Parling; Tom Wood, Chris Robshaw (capt.), Ben Morgan. RES: David Paice, Mako Vunipola, David Wilson, Mouritz Botha, James Haskell, Danny Care, Owen Farrell, Jonathan Joseph.

SOUTH AFRICA
Zane Kirchner; J.P. Pietersen, Juan de Jongh, Jean de Villiers (capt.), Francois Hougaard; Patrick Lambie, Ruan Pienaar; Gurthro Steenkamp, Adriaan Strauss, Jannie du Plessis; Eben Etzebeth, Juandre Kruger; Francois Louw, Willem Alberts, Duane Vermeulen. RES: Schalk Brits, Heinke van der Merwe, Patric Cilliers, Flip van der Merwe, Marcell Coetzee, Elton Jantjies, Jaco Taute, Lwazi Mvovo.

SCOTLAND vs TONGA
Saturday, November 24, 15:00 GMT, Aberdeen

Andy Robinson has looked to freshen up his side by picking Henry Pyrgos for his first start at scrumhalf, and adding new caps Grant Gilchrist and Tom Heathcote to the reserves. Scott Lawson and Max Evans earn starts, and Alasdair Strokosch is fit enough to return to the flank in place of John Barclay. Tonga have changed only one, as Hale T-Pole joins Nili Latu in the back row for the first time since 2009, replacing Steve Mafi who moves to the bench. Sione Timani and Kamaliele Sakalia look likely to see their first November action from the reserves.

This is yet another close match that either side can win. Scotland have lost the last two, but haven’t been terrible, while the Ikale Tahi narrowly lost to Italy and then beat the Americans. Tonga are a bit like the French in that you never quite know which team is going to show up and even within a game they have a tendency to go to sleep at times. An upset is not out of the question, but Scotland look to have enough cool heads in the side to take care of business, winning by 10 in a fun match at Pittodrie.

EDIT: Ryan Grant has withdrawn injured, and is replaced by Kyle Traynor. Gordon Reid have been added to the bench.

SCOTLAND
Stuart Hogg; Sean Lamont, Max Evans, Matt Scott, Tim Visser; Greig Laidlaw, Henry Pyrgos; Kyle Traynor, Scott Lawson, Euan Murray; Richie Gray, Alastair Kellock; Alasdair Strokosch, Kelly Brown (capt.), David Denton. RES: Dougie Hall, Gordon Reid, Geoff Cross, Grant Gilchrist, John Barclay, Rory Lawson, Tom Heathcote, Nick De Luca.

TONGA
Vungakoto Lilo; Fetu’u Vainikolo, Sukanaivalu Hufanga, Sione Piukala, Viliami Helu; Fangatapu Apikotoa, Taniela Moa; Sona Taumalolo, Elvis Taione, Halani Aulika; Joe Tuineau, Lua Lokotui; Hale T-Pole, Nili Latu (capt.), Viliame Ma’afu. RES: Ilaisa Ma’asi, Tevita Mailau, Kamaliele Sakalia, Sione Timani, Steve Mafi, Viliame Iongi, Eddie Paea, Alipate Fatafehi.

FRANCE vs SAMOA
Saturday, November 24, 17:00 GMT, Paris

France are on a high at the moment, and Philippe Saint-Andre looks to keep a bit of consistency with his selections by changing only three. Two thirds of the Clermont front row in the forms of Thomas Domingo and Benjamin Kayser check in, as does their club mate Morgan Parra at scrumhalf. Samoa have been forced into changes through injury, as Joe Tekori, Johnny Leota, and Robert Lilomaiava are asked to step up. Ti’i Paulo is a straight swap with Ole Avei at hooker.

One could be forgiven for thinking that fate was on the side of the Manu, who swept aside Wales in another memorable encounter in Cardiff last Friday, but facing a rampant French side at home in Paris is an altogether different animal. On their last visit there Samoa were beaten by nearly 40 points, and though it’s highly unlikely that will happen this time, one wonders just how far they can push Les Bleus given the toll the injuries have taken on them. Expect some fireworks early, but the French have too much class and too much form to give Samoa more than a sniff. Michalak & Co. march to a 14 point win over a subdued Samoa.

FRANCE
Brice Dulin; Wesley Fofana, Florian Fritz, Maxime Mermoz, Vincent Clerc; Frederic Michalak, Morgan Parra; Thomas Domingo, Benjamin Kayser, Nicolas Mas; Pascal Pape (capt.), Yoann Maestri; Yannick Nyanga, Fulgence Ouedraogo, Louis Picamoles. RES: Dimitri Szarzewski, Yannick Forestier, Vincent Debaty, Jocelino Suta, Damien Chouly, Maxime Machenaud, Francois Trinh-Duc, Yoann Huget.

SAMOA
Robert Lilomaiava; Paul Perez, George Pisi, Johnny Leota, David Lemi (capt.); Tusi Pisi, Kahn Fotuali’i; Sakaria Taulafo, Ti’i Paulo, Census Johnston; Filo Paulo, Joe Tekori; Ofisa Treviranus, Maurie Fa’asavalu, Taiasina Tu’ifua. RES: Ole Avei, Viliamu Afatia, James Johnson, Fa’atiga Lemalu, Tivani Foma’i, Jeremy Su’a, Ki Anufe, Reupena Levasa.

WALES vs NEW ZEALAND
Saturday, November 24, 17:15 GMT, Cardiff

It’s a game of give and take for the Welsh, as Jonathan Davies returns but George North exits. With Warren Gatland back in control, Sam Warburton’s position is restored along with his captaincy, and experienced leaders Matthew Rees and Luke Charteris are recalled. Rhys Priestland replaces injured Dan Biggar at flyhalf, while Liam Williams takes North’s wing spot. New Zealand have selected their first string side, with all the big names there although Dan Carter is an injury worry, with Aaron Cruden poised to step in should he be declared unfit.

Gatland’s presence should provide a real boost to the embattled Welsh, and Davies adds real impetus to the midfield, but the loss of both North and Biggar is a big blow. The chances of victory, as they were, had been almost nil, and the task seems impossible now, but there is still face to be saved in defeat. If Wales can put the scoreboard out of their thoughts and focus on putting in a passionate eighty minute performance in front of their home supporters, they can emerge from the game with credit. Assuming they do, the All Blacks win by 17.

EDIT: Dan Carter has withdrawn injured, with Aaron Cruden taking his place. Beauden Barrett has been added to the bench.

WALES
Leigh Halfpenny; Alex Cuthbert, Jonathan Davies, Jamie Roberts, Liam Williams; Rhys Priestland, Mike Phillips; Paul James, Matthew Rees, Aaron Jarvis; Bradley Davies, Luke Charteris; Ryan Jones, Sam Warburton (capt.), Toby Faletau. RES: Ken Owens, Gethin Jenkins, Scott Andrews, Aaron Shingler, Justin Tipuric, Tavis Knoyle, James Hook, Scott Williams.

NEW ZEALAND
Israel Dagg; Cory Jane, Conrad Smith, Ma’a Nonu, Julian Savea; Aaron Cruden, Aaron Smith; Tony Woodcock, Andrew Hore, Owen Franks; Luke Romano, Sam Whitelock; Liam Messam, Richie McCaw (capt.), Kieran Read. RES: Dane Coles, Wyatt Crockett, Charlie Faumuina, Brodie Retallick, Victor Vito, Piri Weepu, Beauden Barrett, Ben Smith.

FRENCH BARBARIANS vs JAPAN
Sunday, November 25, 14:00 GMT, Le Havre

The Cherry Blossoms bring a close to their northern tour with a non-cap international against the French Barbarians, whom they face for the third time this year. The Baa-Baas will be led by mostly-but-not-quite retired William Servat, and ably supported by his fellow Stade Toulousain legend Yannick Jauzion. Imposing Norwegian lock Erik Lund adds ballast to a pack which also contains French-qualified South African Antonie Claassen. Japan will look to their dynamic back row and top point scorer Ayumu Goromaru to keep them in the game.

Japan have improved and have several key players back in the team who weren’t their when the sides last met, so it’s likely that this game will be closer. That said they still have problems against physical and experienced forwards, which is exactly what they’ll be up against yet again. Look for both sides to throw the ball around in what should be a highly entertaining encounter, but the French will have too much firepower and win by 12.

FRENCH BARBARIANS
Hugo Bonneval; Benjamin Lapeyre, Henry Chavancy, Yannick Jauzion, Marvin O’Connor; Camille Lopez, Jean-Marc Doussain; Aretz Iguiniz, William Servat (capt.), Jean-Baptiste Poux; Matthias Rolland, Erik Lund; Jean Bouilhou, Ibrahim Diarra, Antonie Claassen. RES: Arnaud Heguy, Yvan Watremez, Yohan Montes, Julien Pierre, Pierre Rabadan, Heini Adams, Jerome Fillol, Jean-Marc Mazzonetto.

JAPAN (probable – to be updated)
Ayumu Goromaru; Toshiaki Hirose (capt.), Tomohiro Senba, Harumichi Tatekawa, Hirotoki Onozawa; Kosei Ono, Fumiaki Tanaka; Yusuke Nagae, Shota Horie, Kensuke Hatakeyama; Hitoshi Ono, Luke Thompson; Hendrik Tui, Michael Leitch, Takashi Kikutani. RES: Haruki Ota, Takuma Asahara, Hiroshi Yamashita, Michael Broadhurst, Koliniasi Holani, Atsushi Hiwasa, Yu Tamura, Go Aruga.