Marcus Smith and Henry Slade have been dropped for England’s Six Nations clash with Italy, while Jamie George is in line to win his 100th cap having been named in the starting line-up for Sunday’s match.
Steve Borthwick has made three changes for Sunday’s Test at Twickenham with Elliot Daly replacing Marcus Smith at fullback, and Fraser Dingwall starting in the centres in place of Slade. Elsewhere, George replaces Luke Cowan-Dickie at hooker. The other switch comes on the bench as Jack van Poortvliet comes in for Harry Randall as replacement scrum-half.
England head into the clash with Italy with two wins from three. They opened their campaign with defeat to Ireland but followed that up with a 26-25 victory over France, and a 16-15 triumph over Scotland. And as they prepare to face Italy, Borthwick has shifted things up in the backline.
Daly makes his first start for England since the Six Nations last year and comes into the side at fullback. Marcus Smith started the tournament at fly-half, then shifted to fullback for their previous two Tests, but he is named among the replacements with Daly preferred.
Northampton Saints’ centre Dingwall will earn his third cap for England on Sunday, having featured twice in last year’s championship. He gets the nod at inside centre where he’ll partner Ollie Lawrence.
George will earn his 100th cap on Sunday after impressing from the bench against France and Scotland. He becomes the seventh men’s player to reach this milestone, having made his England debut in 2015.
“Reaching 100 caps is a wonderful achievement that reflects Jamie’s talent, dedication and hard work,” Borthwick said. “He has consistently given his all while wearing an England shirt and the team couldn’t be prouder of his incredible milestone.”
Elsewhere, Luke Cowan-Dickie is named among the replacements where he’s joined by Ted Hill — who was a late replacement for George Martin ahead of Scotland — and Van Poortvliet.
“England versus Italy is always an exciting fixture to be part of,” Borthwick said. “Playing in front of our home supporters at Allianz Stadium is something we’re really looking forward to, and we’re sure it will be a fantastic game of rugby.”
England XV to face Italy:
Elliot Daly, Tommy Freeman, Ollie Lawrence, Fraser Dingwall, Ollie Sleightholme, Fin Smith, Alex Mitchell; Ellis Genge, Jamie George, Will Stuart, Maro Itoje, Ollie Chessum, Tom Curry, Ben Earl, Tom Willis.
Replacements: Luke Cowan-Dickie, Fin Baxter, Joe Heyes, Ted Hill, Chandler Cunningham-South, Ben Curry, Jack van Poortvliet, Marcus Smith.
Analysis from ESPN’s Tom Hamilton:
This is one of the boldest selection calls Steve Borthwick has made as he shifts things up for Italy.
Elliot Daly’s elevation comes after he impressed off the bench against France and Scotland. With Henry Slade dropped, Daly offers a secondary long kicking option from the back field, and Daly will look to make an impact from the outset having scored the winning try against France in Round 2.
Slade’s absence ends his run in the centres with Ollie Lawrence, as Borthwick brings Fraser Dingwall back in from the cold for his third cap. While Marcus Smith will hope to make an impact at some point in the second half, Slade will have to be content with a spot in the stands. Jamie George has been superb off the bench this tournament and in the week where he revealed the level of his devastation at losing the captaincy ahead of this year’s Six Nations, he is a worthy centurion and a wonderful ambassador for English rugby.
The other change sees that change-up on the bench where Van Poortvliet comes back in for Randall.
This was always expected after Van Poortvliet was given a chance to shine for England ‘A’ in their match against Ireland “A” a fortnight ago. Expect to see England kicking long, but also running from deep on Sunday against a tricky Italy side.
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Source: espn.com