Caluori and BJVR two of seven uncapped players in 42-man England squad

Steve Borthwick has named seven uncapped players in his 42-man England squad for their three-day camp at England’s Performance Centre at Pennyhill Park this week.

The Gallagher PREM’s leading try-scorer this season, 19-year-old Noah Caluori, headlines the list of uncapped players in the squad, which will assemble on Monday afternoon in preparation for the Nations Championship, which will begin for England against South Africa at Johannesburg’s Ellis Park on July 4.

The winger is joined by another uncapped Saracen in the squad, 22-year-old Charlie Bracken, who has established himself as the club’s starting No.9 in recent weeks. He is one of five scrum-halves in the squad, with Northampton Saints’ uncapped 21-year-old Archie McParland also getting the nod after sharing plenty of game time with England and British & Irish Lions No.9 Alex Mitchell – who has also made the squad – in recent weeks.

With looseheads Fin Baxter and Bevan Rodd unavailable for selection, Emmanuel Iyogun will be Saints’ second uncapped player in the squad.

On the other side of the scrum, 21-year-old Asher Opoku-Fordjour is back in the squad after missing the Guinness Six Nations with a shoulder injury. However, with Will Stuart still injured and England’s back-up tighthead during the Six Nations, Trevor Davison, out for the season with a knee injury, Bath’s uncapped 21-year-old tighthead Billy Sela has been included.

Fixture

Nations Championship

South Africa

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4 Jul 26

England

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Sela will be joined in camp by his fellow Bath front-rower, hooker Kepu Tuipulotu. The 20-year-old will join Theo Dan, Jamie George and Jamie Blamire as the four available hookers, with Luke Cowan-Dickie in camp for rehabilitation as he recovers from a broken wrist.

The final uncapped player in the squad is Bristol Bears centre Benhard Janse van Rensburg. The former South Africa U20 international becomes eligible for England on residency grounds from July 8, meaning he will be unavailable for the clash with the nation of his birth, but will be an option for Borthwick for the following matches against Fiji and Argentina.

PREM leaders Northampton have the most players in the squad, with nine, followed by Leicester Tigers and Saracens, who will both offer seven players each.

After long absences on the Test stage, a handful of Tigers players have been rewarded for their form this season with call-ups, with Blamire, Adam Radwan and George Martin all included. Lock Martin has hit the ground running after making his return to action last month, after 14 months on the sidelines as a result of knee and shoulder injuries.

Radwan’s return has come at the expense of Bath wing Henry Arundell, who is fresh from scoring four tries against Newcastle Red Bulls at the weekend. Arundell is not the only Bath player who will be disappointed at missing out, with centre Max Ojomoh also absent from the squad. While several members of the Six Nations squad are missing, the Bath duo are the only fit and available players omitted.

Their Bath team-mate, the 38-cap Ollie Lawrence, whose Six Nations game time was limited due to injury, is another big name to be overlooked.

England training squad

Forwards
Jamie Blamire (Leicester Tigers)
Ollie Chessum (Leicester Tigers)
Arthur Clark (Gloucester Rugby)
Alex Coles (Northampton Saints)
Chandler Cunningham-South (Harlequins)
Tom Curry (Sale Sharks)
Theo Dan (Saracens)
Alex Dombrandt (Harlequins)
Ben Earl (Saracens)
Ellis Genge (Bristol Bears)
Jamie George (Saracens)
Joe Heyes (Leicester Tigers)
Nick Isiekwe (Saracens)
Maro Itoje (Saracens)
Emmanuel Iyogun (Northampton Saints)
George Martin (Leicester Tigers)
Beno Obano (Bath Rugby)
Asher Opoku-Fordjour (Sale Sharks)
Guy Pepper (Bath Rugby)
Henry Pollock (Northampton Saints)
Vilikesa Sela (Bath Rugby)
Kepu Tuipulotu (Bath Rugby)

Backs
Seb Atkinson (Gloucester Rugby)
Charlie Bracken (Saracens)
Noah Caluori (Saracens)
Fraser Dingwall (Northampton Saints)
Immanuel Feyi-Waboso (Exeter Chiefs)
George Ford (Sale Sharks)
Tommy Freeman (Northampton Saints)
George Furbank (Northampton Saints)
Benhard Janse van Rensburg (Bristol Bears)
Archie McParland (Northampton Saints)
Alex Mitchell (Northampton Saints)
Cadan Murley (Harlequins)
Adam Radwan (Leicester Tigers)
Tom Roebuck (Sale Sharks)
Henry Slade (Exeter Chiefs)
Fin Smith (Northampton Saints)
Marcus Smith (Harlequins)
Ben Spencer (Bath Rugby)
Freddie Steward (Leicester Tigers)
Jack van Poortvliet (Leicester Tigers)

Rehabilitation: Luke Cowan-Dickie (Sale Sharks)

Not considered for selection: Fin Baxter (Harlequins), Ben Curry (Sale Sharks), Elliot Daly (Saracens), Trevor Davison (Northampton Saints), Greg Fisilau (Exeter Chiefs), Will Muir (Bath Rugby), Bevan Rodd (Sale Sharks), Sam Underhill (Bath Rugby)