Danny Cipriani and Nick Easter to be named in England’s squad to face Wales
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Version 0 of 1. England’s Danny Cipriani and Nick Easter will complete their unlikely resurrections at the highest level by featuring on the England bench against Wales in Cardiff on Friday night. Cipriani, who has not appeared in the Six Nations since 2008, has been picked as cover for George Ford at fly-half, with the 36-year-old Easter set to understudy Billy Vunipola at No8. The England head coach, Stuart Lancaster, without more than a dozen injured squad players, is also set to pair Luther Burrell and Jonathan Joseph in midfield, with Tom Croft back in the back-row mix. There is no place in a 25-man squad for Northampton’s Alex Corbisiero, Calum Clark and Stephen Myler, Harlequins’ Danny Care or Leicester’s Graham Kitchener. The starting XV is due to be announced on Wednesday. It is a startling reversal of fortune for Cipriani, 27, who was originally set to be omitted from the squad altogether. His recent form for Sale, however, and efforts on the training ground have helped earn him a recall, with Owen Farrell ruled out of the tournament because of knee ligament damage and Myler reportedly nursing a calf problem. Almost seven years have elapsed since Cipriani illuminated the Six Nations stage, scoring 18 points in a 33-10 win against Ireland at Twickenham. He won two caps as a replacement in New Zealand last summer but did not feature in the autumn internationals. This belated opportunity to re-establish himself at the highest level may well convince him to remain based in England, rather than relocating to French club rugby. Easter, who made his last appearance for England in the 2011 World Cup quarter-final, will provide cover at back-row and second-row. He had also feared his international days might be over but the broken leg suffered by Gloucester’s Ben Morgan has given him the chance to add to his 47 caps. England will go into the game without a specialist lock on the bench, with Croft and Easter covering the second row if required. Dan Cole, the Leicester tighthead, has recovered from a foot injury and is expected to make his first international appearance in a year, alongside Dylan Hartley and Joe Marler in the front row. With Geoff Parling, Courtney Lawes and Joe Launchbury absent, Dave Attwood and George Kruis are likely to start in the second row. “Everyone named is fit and ready to go and we are looking forward to finalising our preparations over the next few days,” said Lancaster. “While we have certain players unavailable through injury, it’s great to be able to welcome back guys who missed the QBE autumn internationals such as Dan Cole, Mako Vunipola and Tom Youngs. Their experience, alongside that of players like Tom Croft and Nick Easter, will be invaluable against a strong Welsh team.” The Bath prop Henry Thomas and Exeter’s Jack Nowell have also been retained in the 25. England were beaten 30-3 on their last visit to Cardiff in 2013 but won 29-18 in the reverse fixture at Twickenham in 2014. England XV (to face Wales, probable): M Brown (Harlequins); A Watson (Bath), J Joseph (Bath), L Burrell (Northampton), J May (Gloucester); G Ford (Bath), B Youngs (Leicester); J Marler (Harlequins), D Hartley (Northampton), D Cole (Leicester), D Attwood (Bath), G Kruis (Saracens), J Haskell (Wasps), C Robshaw (Harlequins, capt), B Vunipola (Saracens). Replacements T Youngs (Leicester), M Vunipola (Saracens), K Brookes (Newcastle)/H Thomas (Bath), T Croft (Leicester), N Easter (Harlequins), R Wigglesworth (Saracens), D Cipriani (Sale), B Twelvetrees (Gloucester)/J Nowell (Exeter). Released back to clubs: A Corbisiero (Northampton), C Day (Northampton), C Clark (Northampton), D Care (Harlequins), S Myler (Northampton), H Slade (Exeter), A Goode (Saracens). Unavailable through injury: D Wilson (Bath), C Lawes (Northampton), J Launchbury (Wasps), G Parling (Leicester), E Slater (Leicester), T Wood (Northampton), B Morgan (Gloucester), O Farrell (Saracens), B Barritt (Saracens), K Eastmond (Bath), M Tuilagi (Leicester), S Rokoduguni (Bath), B Foden (Northampton). |