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The England update that suggests time might be right for Arundell
By PA
Henry Arundell is pushing hard to make his England comeback in Sunday’s Guinness Six Nations clash with Italy after playing a full role in Tuesday’s training session. Arundell could be part of a reshaped back three that might also see Anthony Watson make his first start since the 2021 championship, having recovered from a significant knee injury.
London Irish sensation Arundell announced his arrival to the international game by scoring a stunning try on his England debut during the July tour to Australia but he was then ruled out of the autumn because of an ankle injury.
A successful return as a replacement for Irish against Harlequins on January 29 has now propelled him back into contention for England with the indications from training at their Surrey camp pointing to his involvement when a resurgent Italy visit Twickenham.
Head coach Steve Borthwick will want to call upon the explosive 20-year-old’s X-factor as soon as possible, although all three of his caps have come as a replacement on last July's tour and he is still learning the nuances of defence.
For the Calcutta Cup defeat by Scotland that opened England’s Six Nations campaign, Max Malins and Ollie Hassell-Collins were the wings with Freddie Steward at full-back, but Borthwick may use the Italy match to test out a different permutation.
Henry Slade has returned to full training following his struggle with a hip problem and he could force a rethink in midfield, most likely displacing Joe Marchant at outside centre. As well as the big talking point of whether to persist with the playmaking axis of Marcus Smith and Owen Farrell, the back row is also under close scrutiny.
Flanker Jack Willis is thought to be on track to be involved after his build-up to the Scotland clash was disrupted by his club commitments with French club Toulouse, contributing to his non-selection.
Borthwick names his side on Friday afternoon with England desperate to topple Italy and secure their first win under their new boss.
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Latest Comments
How about a SH type of Champions Cup? I'm not going to repeat the whole response here, but did write what I think would be good. Not only for NZ, but all of the SH. I would however love to hear your thoughts on such a competition
Go to commentsCan’t really complain about those scores. Individually, too many were off their best and went missing in big, match defining moments. Collectively, the team often looked muddled and lacked cool-headed, leadership especially in the final quarter of games. This was further compounded by a quality drop-off from the bench.
Calls for Borthwick’s dismissal have grown increasingly louder with each passing game as he has been shown to be tactically and selectively subpar. His position is now in the balance and I don’t believe he’ll be kept on unless England fix their defensive issues and beat at least one of Ireland, France or Scotland in the 6Ns, which on the latest showing looks increasingly unlikely.
Couple of returning players in Chessum and Mitchell coupled with a stronger bench, might give England fans a few reasons to remain optimistic.
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