Alex Mitchell has been ruled out of England’s Nations Championship opener against Australia on Sunday after injuring his hamstring during Northampton’s Premiership victory over Gloucester. The first-choice No 9 under head coach Steve Borthwick will undergo a scan on Tuesday to establish the extent of the injury.
Bristol scrum-half Harry Randall and Bath’s Ben Spencer have been called into England’s 36-man squad. With Northampton’s uncapped Archie McParland also unavailable after suffering a calf injury in training, Leicester’s Jack van Poortvliet is expected to start against the Wallabies, while either Randall or Spencer could provide cover from the bench.
Mitchell is expected to return once he has recovered, but his absence gives Randall and Spencer an important opportunity to compete for selection with the World Cup less than a year away. Randall offers a dynamic running threat, while Spencer is recognised for his tactical kicking and has recently returned to action after shoulder surgery.
Gloucester’s Seb Atkinson, Exeter’s Immanuel Feyi-Waboso and Northampton’s Fin Smith remain in the squad despite recent injury concerns. Bath’s Max Ojomoh and Saracens’ Noah Caluori have been left out, while Bath hooker Kepu Tuipulotu has withdrawn because of injury and Saracens’ Theo Dan returns.
England’s squad includes 20 forwards and 16 backs and assembled at Pennyhill Park on Monday. After facing Australia in the fourth round of the Nations Championship, England will play Japan and New Zealand before the finals weekend later in the month.
Borthwick described the autumn fixtures as England’s final chance to face southern-hemisphere opposition before next year’s World Cup. He said Australia would present an “exciting challenge” because of the quality and experience gained through their recent Test programme.
Scotland have also suffered two significant injuries. Jamie Ritchie is expected to miss four to six weeks with a suspected medial collateral ligament injury, while Newcastle prop Elliot Millar Mills has been ruled out of all four November matches with a knee problem. Edinburgh forwards Ollie Blyth-Lafferty, D’Arcy Rae and Freddy Douglas have been called into Gregor Townsend’s squad for Tests against New Zealand, Australia and Japan.
Sources: The Guardian Sport.