England name 24-man squad for Twickenham clash against Barbarians – Rugby news
Rugby Football Union (RFU) England today has announced their 24-man squad for the weekend clash against the Barbarians.
RFU officials announced the English squad on Monday, May 23 for their Sunday May 29 clash against the Baa Baas at Twickenham. The squad was announced in a statement released by the officials at RFU’s website. The squad is a mixture of youth and experience. However, the starting line will consist of a considerable number of senior players.
RFU has announced seven uncapped and 11 England seniors’ players for the match. The squad is believed to be a part of the RFU long-term player developmental strategy. The average age of the team is 24 years and two months, which includes eight players who have represented the England under 20 sides in finals of the IRB Junior World Championship finals in 2008 and 2009 respectively.
The England Saxons head coach, Stuart Lancaster, will announce the playing team on Wednesday May 25. Jon Callard and Simon Hardy will assist Lancaster in finalising the squad.
Lancaster has urged the players to provide their best in order to make their nominations for the English 2011 Rugby World Cup Squad and for the England Saxons squad. He said, “It’s a great opportunity for all the players who are looking to force their way into Martin Johnson’s plans for the World Cup and those who will go on to defend the Churchill Cup with the England Saxons next month”.
Commenting on the selection of the team whose average age is 24 years and two months, Lancaster said, “A lot of the players have played in big games recently both in Europe and the Aviva Premiership. If we combine them with some of the more experienced players like Paul and Charlie Hodgson, Ugo Monye and James Simpson-Daniel, it should be an exciting combination."
The seven uncapped players include the likes of Tom Johnson (Exeter), Joe Marler (Harlequins), Henry Trinder (Gloucester), and Kieran Brookes (Newcastle). The squad also includes eight graduates of the England under 20 sides that reached the IRB Junior World Championship finals in 2008 and 2009.
Commenting on the game and its preparation, Lancaster confirmed that Barbarians lineup for the match has both quality and experience. However, he expressed his confidence that the young players are coming out of a system that has quality and people have seen the results these youngsters can provide against the strong opposition. Lancaster provided the examples of Alex Corbisiero, Ben Youngs, Courtney Lawes, and their recent performances.
Stuart Lancaster has been put in charge of the proceedings regarding the game plan, strategies and associated development of the players. The squad excludes the players from the Leicster Tigers and Saracens as both teams will be playing in the final of the Premiership during the weekend.
England squad
Forwards: Dave Attwood (Gloucester), Kieran Brookes (Newcastle), Calum Clark (Northampton), Paul Doran-Jones (Gloucester), Carl Fearns (Sale), James Gaskell (Sale), Joe Gray (Harlequins), Tom Johnson (Exeter), Graham Kitchener (Worcester), Joe Marler (Harlequins), Matthew Mullan (Worcester), Luke Narraway (Gloucester), David Paice (London Irish)
Backs: Matt Banahan (Bath), Mike Brown (Harlequins), Rory Clegg (Harlequins), Lee Dickson (Northampton), Paul Hodgson (London Irish), Charlie Hodgson (Sale), Ugo Monye (Harlequins), Stephen Myler (Northampton), James Simpson-Daniel (Gloucester), Henry Trinder (Gloucester), Jordan Turner-Hall (Harlequins)
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