'That was a chat I had with Steve and I'm sure the other boys have as well'

Harlequins vice-captain Cadan Murley hopes adding outside centre to his repertoire will improve his prospects of securing a place in England’s World Cup squad next year.

The 26-year-old, who has won all six of his England caps on the wing, started the final game of Quins’ Gallagher PREM season, a 38-31 victory over league leaders Northampton Saints, at outside centre on Saturday, a position he has flirted with this season.

Murley is not the only England player to have made that switch this season. Tom Roebuck played the final two games of Sale Sharks’ campaign with the No.13 on his back, while Tommy Freeman has alternated between the wing and midfield for both club and country over the past 18 months. Elliot Daly, meanwhile, is 33 and so adept in either role that there is yet to be any sort of consensus as to which role he is best suited to.

Freeman has been the trailblazer for England’s wingers moving infield under Steve Borthwick, but the trend appears to be spreading throughout the squad, with Murley recently revealing on The Rugby Pod that it has been actively encouraged by the head coach.

This kills two birds with one stone for Borthwick: it allows him to make better use of his burgeoning crop of elite wingers, and it provides options at outside centre, which has perennially been a tricky position to fill for England.

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Having started on the wing in the final two matches of the Guinness Six Nations, Murley is the incumbent left wing heading into a Nations Championship series with South Africa, Fiji and Argentina, but adding positional versatility, he believes, will only solidify his place in Borthwick’s squad.

“There are so many skills that are interchangeable between 13 and wing,” he said when joining The Rugby Pod this week. “With the World Cup on the horizon, being able to play multiple positions is important, especially going into a smaller World Cup squad than usual. I think it’s a 33 rather than a 36.

“You need people to be able to play multiple positions. That was a chat I had with Steve and I’m sure the other boys have as well.

“It’s something that, looking forward, as you get a bit older on the wing, you probably do start looking in there anyway because you’re not going to be as quick as some of these young lads coming through.

“So yeah, it’s definitely a look towards the future, and to be able to do it while I still have the speed as well.”