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England name 25-man squad ahead of Le Crunch


England warm up during the England training session held at Pennyhill Park. (Photo by David Rogers/Getty Images)
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Influential second row Maro Itoje, who suffered a medial ligament tear against Ireland, is not the only player to miss out for England, as Eddie Jones has cut his squad to 25 ahead of hosting France at Twickenham on Saturday.

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The trio of Ben Te’o, Joe Cokanasiga and Brad Shields were all fit enough to take part in training this week, but only Cokanasiga and Shields have been retained by Jones, with Te’o not part of the final 25, despite being one of the Australian’s favoured performers over recent years.

Centre Manu Tuilagi was in impressive form against Ireland in England’s Guinness Six Nations opener and it seems as if he has done enough to keep his place at 12 going into the game against France.

Loosehead Ellis Genge, who was on the bench against Ireland, is another to miss out, with Exeter ChiefsBen Moon kept on by England, whilst Harry Williams, who was also on the bench in Dublin, has been replaced by Leicester TigersDan Cole.

Nick Isiekwe, who was called up as cover for the injured Itoje, has not be retained, either, signalling that one of Courtney Lawes or Joe Launchbury will start alongside George Kruis in the second row, with the other taking up duties as a replacement.

If England stick with the same XV that they went with against Ireland, Itoje’s enforced absence aside, that likely leaves competitions between Shields and Nathan Hughes for the last forward spot on the bench, and a similar tussle between Cokanasiga and Chris Ashton for the 23 jersey.

The full 25-man squad retained is as follows:

Forwards
Dan Cole (Leicester Tigers)
Luke Cowan-Dickie (Exeter Chiefs)
Tom Curry (Sale Sharks)
Jamie George (Saracens)
Nathan Hughes (Wasps)
George Kruis (Saracens)
Joe Launchbury (Wasps)
Courtney Lawes (Northampton Saints)
Ben Moon (Exeter Chiefs)
Brad Shields (Wasps)
Kyle Sinckler (Harlequins)
Billy Vunipola (Saracens)
Mako Vunipola (Saracens)
Mark Wilson (Newcastle Falcons)

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Backs
Chris Ashton (Sale Sharks)
Joe Cokanasiga (Bath Rugby)
Elliot Daly (Wasps)
Owen Farrell (Saracens) captain
George Ford (Leicester Tigers)
Jonny May (Leicester Tigers)
Jack Nowell (Exeter Chiefs)
Dan Robson (Wasps) *
Henry Slade (Exeter Chiefs)
Manu Tuilagi (Leicester Tigers)
Ben Youngs (Leicester Tigers)

Watch: Eddie Jones speaks to the press following England’s win over Ireland.

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NoLongerARuck 1 hour ago
Nations Championship: 'The data shows the north has finally caught up with the south'

The Six Nations produced so many compelling games and so much of action packed moments that you can only conclude that its the best international comp out there at the moment except for a world cup. If Wales improve it will be even better especially given the strides Italy have made in recent times. The Rugby Championship is now taking a hiatus in a year it really should be building toward something better which is terrible considering the competition was so tight last year. The Nations Champs promises much but one gets the feeling that the 6 Nations teams will not be at their peak given its at the end of their long season. In terms of rugby quality and entertainment Id rather watch the 6 Nations over everything else other than a world cup right now. The North arguably offers more in terms of entertainment than the South at club level as well. The Prem, the Champs Cup, URC and Top 14 all feature plenty of scoring and different playing styles while Super Rugby seems to be the same thing game in game out. While the South tries to speed up the game artificially with new trials and law variations the North has shown you can do it with good refereeing which penalises cynical play harshly and encourages positive actions on the field. In terms of entertainment the North wins. In terms of winning? They are making strides but until they win another world cup or get a team to rank number 1 again for an extended time again they cant really say they are better than the South.

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