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Haskell and Marler given chance to impress
By Alex Fisher
James Haskell and Joe Marler will get the chance to stake a claim for a place in England's squad to face Scotland in the Six Nations after being named in Eddie Jones' 32-man training group.
Haskell and Marler were unavailable for England's victories over Italy and Wales due to suspension.
They were included in Jones' pre-tournament squad and return to the fold as the competition takes a break ahead of round three later this month.
England will train against Georgia on Tuesday and Wednesday as part of their build up to the Calcutta Cup clash with Scotland on February 24.
Haskell and Marler will be eligible to play at Murrayfield and will hope to force their way back in despite impressive performances from England so far.
Nathan Hughes and Denny Solomona are also in the extended squad, but Alex Hepburn, George Kruis and Sam Simmonds do not feature despite being in the 23 that beat Wales – the latter starting at number eight.
England squad:
Forwards: Dan Cole, Luke Cowan-Dickie, Charlie Ewels, Jamie George, Dylan Hartley, James Haskell, Nathan Hughes, Nick Isiekwe, Maro Itoje, Courtney Lawes, Joe Launchbury, Joe Marler, Zach Mercer, Sam Moore, Chris Robshaw, Sam Underhill, Mako Vunipola, Harry Williams.
Backs: Mike Brown, Danny Care, Owen Farrell, George Ford, Gabriel Ibitoye, Jonathan Joseph, Harry Mallinder, Jonny May, Jack Nowell, Denny Solomona, Marcus Smith, Ben Te'o, Anthony Watson, Richard Wigglesworth.
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Latest Comments
Can we also show some love for Tane Edmed’s fantastic draw and pass? Put his body on the line and committed the defender before letting go of that pass. Flawless skill.
Go to commentsYou forget this is Rassie Erasmus who is still holding the Springbok keys. Even with Felix Jones orchestrating a really tight RWC SF last year. It still wasn't enough to get England past their particular Springbok Monkey in world cups. The reason is FJ was going off of what they did in 2019 not necessarily adapting to current Springboks. So yes, Australia can get passed England because let's be honest, England have a one track strategy, Springboks do not. Even with rush defense I wouldn't be surprised if Rassie continually tweaks it. Also bear in mind Rassie is happy to sacrifice a few mid year and inter World Cup matches to pin point how opposition plays and how to again tweak strategies to get his Springboks in peak performance for the next World Cup. As much as most teams like to win games in front of them and try to win everything, Rassie always makes sure to learn and train for the greatest showdown International Rugby has to offer. Tbh, most people remember World Cup wins and ignore intermediate losses as a result but will remember also WC losses, Ireland, even if they won games in the interim. So even if games are won against the Springboks, it's likely Rassie is just getting a feel for how opposition is moving and adapt accordingly…in time. For Rassie, a loss is never a loss because he uses it as a chance to learn and improve. Sometimes during a game, again like the England match in last year's Semi Final.
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