Ex-England No.8 Nick Easter urges RFU to ditch 'self-defeating' ban

Former captain Nick Easter wants Steve Borthwick to parachute Tom and Jack Willis into the England squad to save the Six Nations campaign from further embarrassment and signal an end to the self-defeating ban on players operating outside the Gallagher PREM.

Tom, the younger of the two brothers, was selected by Borthwick in the Elite Player Squad (EPS) at the start of the season but was dumped after agreeing to join Bordeaux this summer, while Jack is a key member of the Galacticos squad at Toulouse.

Under the current Rugby Football Union rules, players not in England can only be picked in “exceptional circumstances” and Easter says that is now the case after debilitating losses to Scotland and Ireland has left Borthwick’s title bid in tatters.

This season, Tom, 25, has gained more metres than any PREM forward, has the most carries and defenders beaten along with 11 turnovers, with Jack continuing to win plaudits in the unforgiving Top 14.

Easter, who captained England to the Six Nations title in 2011, told RugbyPass: “The Willis brother are ready to fire and I would bring them in. It’s important that we understand the exceptional circumstances because we are facing a first ever loss to Italy and then we will be staring down the barrel of the worst ever Six Nations finish.

“I would pick Tom and Jack because you choose your best players and we need to bend the rules and get them in and tell them ‘you are with us to the Rugby World Cup’.

“It is quite clear that is what is needed and you have to win over the fans because it wasn’t a pretty sight at Twickenham last Saturday. Australia did it in 2015 and Wales also changed their rules.

“Tom was brilliant last year and you thought England had found the right guy (at No.8) and he is my sort of player. In the last two games, opponents have ganged up on the back row England have picked.

“The game hasn’t changed and you need to win the gain line battle and that means big hitters or players who will take two or three opponents to drag you down and that guy is Tom Willis.

“Unless the front five are absolute monsters it is quite hard to play the system we played against Ireland.”

Easter would also urge Borthwick to consider picking prop Will Collier, who is playing for Castres in the Top 14, along with Kyle Sinckler and Dave Ribbans, proven England internationals operating at Toulon.

“They would be phenomenal off the bench:” he added.

The RFU brought in its rule in 2011, making overseas-based players ineligible for England selection unless in exceptional circumstances.

Borthwick used this to select Jack Willis for Rugby World Cup 2023 after the collapse of Wasps the previous Autumn left the back-rower without a club until Toulouse offered him a contract.

Willis opted to stay on in France after England’s third-place finish, making him ineligible for Test selection, and the same restriction will be applied to Tom. Borthwick dumped Tom even though he is eligible for selection, and will be until next summer’s cross-Channel move.

Other leading rugby nations have tried and then scrapped restrictions on where their players can earn a living.

Australia introduced the (Matt) Giteau Law in 2015, allowing overseas-based players to represent the Wallabies if they had at least 60 caps and seven years of Super Rugby service.

It was later relaxed to 30 caps or five years of service, and by August 2025, was deemed “redundant” and scrapped by Rugby Australia.

Wales tried to keep players in the country but those restrictions have been changed, and a host of players have headed or will be heading to England with the Ospreys set to be axed.

New Zealand allows players to take sabbaticals with many heading to Japan to take up lucrative contracts before returning to the Test fold.

Easter’s call comes in the wake of Ireland’s record 42-21 win at Twickenham which exposed fundamental weaknesses that have to be addressed.

“There is something not right with the energy in this England group and the Ireland performance was pretty insipid,” he added.

“I was involved in heavy England defeats and they were down to too many errors or quality of the squad but there was no lack of intent to try and win every physical battle.

“You look at the Scotland game and you have to ask is there a hangover from the Lions tour with some fatigue that needs to be managed? Somehow, they have to get back the most basic requirement in sport and instil that energy – get them bouncing off the walls.

“Take the game to the opposition before you talk about anything else. You need to be able to win the no-talent battles of getting off the floor quicker and into the faces of the opposition to harry and fight.

“Without that you are going to struggle and that is what we have seen in the last two games. Ellis Genge has been phenomenal but when Caelan Doris run ran through with Ellis just putting a shoulder out there, that is a microcosm of the physical intent we are seeing.

“There will be changes to bring in energy and leadership and you cannot pick the same team after that poor performance (against Ireland).

“This the best chance for Italy to beat England for the first time. They are a good team, know what they are doing and the really dangerous part is they have a two-week build-up, and they will be given a good game plan. The unbeaten record (vs Italy) is on the line.”