Black Ferns assistant coach Steve Jackson said England is defensively strong, and this has only strengthened since Kiwi John Mitchell took over as their coach.
"He's a defence coach, and he's been around a wee while, and we knew they like to bring line speed, and it will be [crucial] how we adjust our attack to that.
"We've seen some growth within their attack as well, moving the ball inside their 22m area as opposed to kicking more than what they've done before."
The Black Ferns had been working to find openings that would allow them to breach and penetrate their defensive line.
"It's going to be tough and we know we're going to have to work hard for 80 minutes."
While England was a high-profile warm-up opponent for New Zealand ahead of the tournament, it was perfect because they wanted to play the best sides as often as possible. By the end of the tournament, they will have played England twice and France within a month.
"We're putting ourselves up against the best. Our mindset is the same. We're going out there to win a game, putting on the best performance that we can."
Jackson said the Black Ferns were starting to build a lot of depth in some positions as a result of the Pacific Four tournament. New players had joined the team, and their exposure to England at the weekend would be great preparation.
"There won't be too many of our players that have played in front of a crowd of 50-plus thousand and especially with 90 percent of them being in the white jersey."
In the wake of their 2022 World Cup win, the Black Ferns did not have the best campaign in WXV1 when England beat them comfortably 33-12.
"Ever since then, we knew this game could happen, and now it's here. We've built quite heavily towards this game. We are an underdog going into this game, playing them at their home stadium.
"We need to front. They beat us last time, they outpassioned us and wanted it a little bit more than we did."
Jackson said emphasis has been put on the mental side of the game with mental skills coach Ian Saunders working with the group.
"It's talking to them about anxiety and how to deal with certain situations during the week, nervous feelings and all that goes along with playing in a huge Test match, whether you think you're up for it.
"As a coaching group and a management group, we have those feelings as well ahead of a game and it's about how you can relax, and relax your mind to switch off from rugby when you need to and switch back in when the time is right."
While the WXV tournament and the England warm-up game were significant, the six-week tour was important as it replicates what they will face in next year's World Cup.
"It is important how we deal week in, week out, being in a competition where we expect results."