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Robshaw and Ford to lead inexperienced England
By Alex Fisher
Chris Robshaw and George Ford will lead an inexperienced England side against the Barbarians on Sunday as Eddie Jones' men prepare for their tour of Argentina.
Robshaw was stripped of the captaincy after England's dismal performance in the 2015 Rugby World Cup but remained part of Jones' squad as they swept all before them.
England won the Six Nations Grand Slam in 2016 and came agonisingly close to repeating the feat this year, a defeat to Ireland on the final weekend meaning they had to settle for being champions.
Next up for Jones' men are two Tests with the Pumas and they will be without a host of their key players due to the British and Irish Lions tour of New Zealand.
As a result this weekend's side has a fresh look to it, with Robshaw and Ford named as co-captains for the match at Twickenham.
"I'm excited about this squad playing the Barbarians on Sunday," said Jones, who has eight uncapped players in the starting XV.
"The players have trained really well with intensity over the last few weeks and now we need to put that onto the field this weekend.
"While we have some really experienced players starting the game there is a great opportunity for some of the younger players to show what they are about against a Barbarians team full of quality international players.
"We will be treating this game as a Test match and expecting the Barbarians to start the game quickly. This match will be crucial preparation ahead of our two-Test series against Argentina next month."
Jones added: "We need the responsibility of leadership shared. Chris will look after the forwards and defence while George will look after the backs and attack.
"It splits the responsibility nicely and with so many younger players there we need co-captains rather than just one guy responsible for everything."
Two players not involved in the matchday squad are Rob Buchanan and Ryan Mills due to injury, and the pair have been released from England's training camp for treatment.
England XV to face Barbarians: Mike Brown, Nathan Earle, Sam James, Alex Lozowski, Jonny May, George Ford, Danny Care; Ellis Genge, Jack Singleton, Will Collier, Charlie Ewels, Nick Isiekwe, Chris Robshaw, Sam Underhill, Josh Beaumont.
Replacements: George McGuigan, Ross Harrison, Jamal Ford-Robinson, Tom Ellis, Ben Curry, Mark Wilson, Richard Wrigglesworth, Mike Haley.
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Latest Comments
i think Argentina v France could be a good game too, depending on which Argentina turns up. The most difficult to call is Scotland Australia.
Go to commentsSmith is playing a different game with the rest of the backs struggling to understand. That's the problem with so called playmakers, if nobody gets what they're doing then it often just leads to a turnover. It gets worse when Borthwick changes one of them, which is why they don't score points at the end. Sometimes having a brilliant playmaker can be problematic if a team cannot be built around them. Once again Borthwick seems lacking in either coaching or selection. I can't help but think it's the latter coupled with pressure to select the big name players.
Lastly, his forward replacements are poor and exposed either lack of depth or selection pressure. Cole hemorrhages scrum penalties whenever he comes on, opponents take advantage of the England scrum and close out the game. Is that the best England can offer?
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