***Official English Rugby Thread***

ENGLAND





HEADMASTER: STUART LANCASTER
ASSISTANT HEADMASTER: ANDY FARRELL
FORWARDS PREFECT: GRAHAM ROWNTREE
BACKS PREFECT: MIKE CATT




ENGLISH EPS SQUAD DEPTH:

Forwards:

Loosehead Prop:
1.Alex Corbisiero (Northampton Saints, 25 Years Old, 21 Caps)
2.Joe Marler (Harlequins, 23 Years Old, 18 Caps)
3.Mako Vunipola (Saracens, 22 Years Old, 16 Caps)
4.Matt Mullan (London Wasps, 26 Years Old, 2 Caps)
5.Paul Doran-Jones (Harlequins, 28 Years Old, 6 Caps)

Tighthead Prop:
1.Dan Cole (Leicester Tigers, 26 Years Old, 48 Caps)
2.David Wilson (Bath, 28 Years Old, 32 Caps)
3.Henry Thomas (Sale Sharks, 22 Years Old, 4 Caps)
4.Will Collier (Harlequins, 23 Years Old, U20 Capped)
5.Phil Swainston (London Wasps, 24 Years Old, Saxons Capped)

Hooker:
1. Dylan Hartley (Northampton Saints, 27 Years Old, 53 Caps)
2. Tom Youngs (Leicester Tigers, 26 Years Old, 18 Caps)
3. Rob Webber (Bath, 27 Years Old, 5 Caps)
4. David Paice (London Irish, 30 Years Old, 8 Caps)
5. Jack Yeandle (Exeter Chiefs, 24 Years Old, 0 Caps)

No 4 (Enforcer):
1. Joe Launchbury (London Wasps, 22 Years Old, 17 Caps)
2. Courtney Lawes (Northampton Saints, 24 Years Old, 28 Caps)
3. Graham Kitchener (Leicester Tigers, 24 Years Old, Saxons Capped)
4. Ed Slater (Leicester Tigers, 25 Years Old, 0 Caps)
5. Mouritz Botha (Saracens, 31 Years Old, 10 Caps)

No 5 (Mobile Decoder):
1. Geoff Parling (Leicester Tigers, 30 Years Old, 22 Caps)
2. David Attwood (Bath, 26 Years Old, 8 Caps)
3. George Robson (Harlequins, 28 Years Old, Saxons Capped)
4. George Kruis (Saracens, 23 Years Old, Saxons Capped)
5. Tom Palmer (London Wasps, 34 Years Old, 37 Caps)

Blindside Flanker:
1.Chris Robshaw (Harlequins, 27 Years Old, 23 Caps)
2.Tom Wood (Northampton Saints, 27 Years Old, 26 Caps)
3.Tom Croft (Leicester Tigers, 28 Years Old, 40 Caps)
4.James Haskell (London Wasps, 28 Years Old, 50 Caps)
5.Callum Clark (Northampton Saints, 24 Years Old, EPS Member)

Openside Flanker
1.Luke Wallace (Harlequins, 23 Years Old, Saxons Member)
2.Will Fraser (Saracens, 24 Years Old, Saxons Member)
3.Sam Jones (London Wasps, 21 Years Old, U20 Capped)
4.Matt Kvesic (Gloucester, 21 Years Old, 2 Caps)
5.Steffon Armitage (RC Toulon, 28 Years Old, 5 Caps)

No 8/3rd Rower:
1.Billy Vunipola (London Wasps, 21 Years Old, 8 Caps)
2.Ben Morgan (Gloucester, 24 Years Old, 17 Caps)
3.David Ewers (Exeter Chiefs, 23 Years Old, Saxons Squad)
4.Sam Dickinson (Northampton Saints, 28 Years Old, Saxons Squad)
5.Thomas Waldrom (Leicester Tigers, 30 Years Old, 5 Caps)

Backs:

Scrum Half:
1.Danny Care (Harlequins, 26 Years Old, 45 Caps)
2.Lee Dickson (Northampton Saints, 28 Years Old, 14 Caps)
3.Ben Youngs (Leicester Tigers, 24 Years Old, 37 Caps)
4.Dan Robson (Gloucester, 21 Years Old, Saxons Capped)
5.Joe Simpson (London Wasps, 25 Years Old, 1 Cap)

Fly Half/1st 5/8s:
1.Owen Farrell (Saracens, 22 Years Old, 23 Caps)
2.George Ford (Bath, 20 Years Old, Saxons Capped)
3.Stephen Myler (Northampton Saints, 29 Years Old, 1 Cap)
4.Freddie Burns (Gloucester, 23 Years Old, 3 Caps)
5.Henry Slade (Sale Sharks, 20 Years Old, U20 Capped)

Inside Centre/2nd 5/8s:
1.Billy Twelvetrees (Gloucester, 25 Years Old, 11 Caps)
2.Brad Barritt (Saracens, 27 Years Old, 17 Caps)
3.Luther Burrell (Northampton Saints, 25 Years Old, 3 Caps)
4.Kyle Eastmond (Bath, 24 Years Old, 2 Caps)
5.Ollie Devoto (Bath, 20 Years Old, U20 Capped)

Outside Centre:
1.Manu Tuilagi (Leicester Tigers, 22 Years Old, 22 Caps)
2.Elliot Daly (London Wasps, 21 Years Old, EPS Member)
3.Henry Trinder (Gloucester, 24 Years Old, EPS Squad)
4.Jonathan Joseph (Bath, 22 Years Old, 6 Caps)
5.Joel Tomkins (Saracens, 26 Years Old, 3 Caps)

Winger:
1.Christian Wade (London Wasps, 22 Years Old, 1 Cap)
2.Marland Yarde (London Irish, 21 Years Old, 2 Caps)
3.Jack Nowell (Exeter Chiefs, 20 Years Old, 3 Caps)
4.Jonny May (Gloucester, 23 Years Old, 4 Caps)
5.Chris Ashton (Saracens, 26 Years Old, 37 Caps)

Full Back:
1.Mike Brown (Harlequins, 28 Years Old, 24 Caps)
2.Anthony Watson (Bath Rugby, 19 Years Old, EPS/U20 Squad)
3.Ben Foden (Northampton Saints, 28 Years Old, 34 Caps)
4.Alex Goode (Saracens, 25 Years Old, 15 Caps)
5.Matthew Tait (Leicester Tigers, 27 Years Old, 38 Caps)

England Under-20s EPS

Forwards:

Prop:
Danny Hobbs-Awoyemi (Northampton Saints, 19 Years Old, JWC Winner, 10 Under 20 Caps)
Scott Wilson (Newcastle Falcons, 19 Years Old, JWC Winner, 9 Under 20 Caps)
Paul Hill (Leeds Carnegie, 18 Years Old, 7 Under 18 Caps)
Alex Lundberg (London Wasps, 19 Years Old, 1 Under 20 Cap)
Harry Rudkin (Leicester Tigers, 19 Years Old, England U18 Capped)

Hooker:
Harry Thacker (Leicester Tigers, 19 Years Old, Under 18 Capped)
Tom Woolstencroft (Bath Rugby, 19 Years Old, Under 18 Capped)

Lock:
Maro Itoje (Saracens, 19 Years Old, Under 18 Capped)
Tom Ellis (Bath Rugby, 19 Years Old, 6 Under 18 Caps)  
Jonny Hill (Gloucester Rugby, 19 Years Old, Uncapped)

Flanker:
Joel Conlon (Exeter Chiefs, 19 Years Old, JWC Winner, 5 Under 20 Caps)
Ross Moriarty (Gloucester Rugby, 19 Years Old, 7 Under 20 Caps)
Gus Jones (London Wasps, 19 Years Old, 2 Under 20 Caps)
Lewis Ludlow (Gloucester Rugby, 19 Years Old, 4 Under 18 Caps)
Will Owen (Leicester Tigers, 18 Years Old, 4 Under 18 Caps)

No 8/3rd Rower:
James Chisholm (Harlequins, 18 Years Old, 8 Under 18 Caps)
Charlie Ewels (Bath Rugby, 18 Years Old, 15 Under 18 Caps)

Backs:

Scrum Half:
Callum Braley (Bristol Rugby, 19 Years Old, JWC Winner, 7 Under 20 Caps)
Stuart Townsend (Exeter Chiefs, 18 Years Old, 6 Under 18 Caps)

Fly Half/1st 5/8s:
Billy Burns (Gloucester Rugby, 19 Years Old, Under 18 Capped)
Louis Grimoldby (Harlequins, 19 Years Old, Under 18 Capped)
Sam Olver (Northampton Saints, 19 Years Old, 9 Under 18 Caps)

Centre:
Harry Sloan (Harlequins, 19 Years Old, JWC Winner, 9 Under 20 Caps)
Tom Stephenson (Northampton Saints, 19 Years Old, JWC Winner, 4 Under 20 Caps)
Max Stelling (Worcester Warriors, 19 Years Old, Uncapped)
Nick Tompkins (Saracens, 18 Years Old, 5 Under 18 Caps)

Winger:
Tom Collins (Northampton Saints, 19 Years Old, 1 Under 20 Cap)
Henry Purdy (Leicester Tigers, 19 Years Old, JWC Winner, 8 Under 20 Caps)
Zach Kibirige (Newcastle Falcons, 19 Years Old, Under 18 Capped)

Full Back:
Aaron Morris (Bedford Blues, 19 Years Old, Uncapped)
Nathan Earle (Saracens, 19 Years Old, 10 Under 18 Caps)
Howard Packman (Northampton Saints, 18 Years Old, 8 Under 18 Caps)

The Kit



Twickenham Stadium



Stadium Capacity: 82,000

Stadium Nickname: HQ

History:

World Cup History:

1987: Quarter Final
1991: 2nd
1995: 4th
1999: Quarter Final
2003: 1st
2007: 2nd
2011: Quarter Final

Six Nations History:

Entered: 112
Overall: 26 Titles
Home Nations: 5
Five Nations: 17
Six Nations: 4

Grand Slams: 12 (1st)
Triple Crowns: 23 (1st)
Wooden Spoons: 22 (3rd Tied Highest with Wales)

Last Grand Slam: 2003
Overall 6Ns Ranking: 2nd (1pt off 1st (France))

Records vs 6Ns:

Wales (Played 124, Won 56, Lost 56, Drawn 12, 45% Win rate)
France (Played 98, Won 53, Lost 38, Drawn 7, 54% Win rate)
Ireland (Played 128, Won 74, Lost 46, Drawn 8, 57% Win rate)
Scotland (Played 132, Won 72, Lost 42, Drawn 18, 54% Win rate)
Italy (Played 19, Won 19, Lost 0, Drawn 0, 100% Win rate)

Records vs 4Ns:

Argentina (Played 20, Won 15, Lost 4, Drawn 1, 75% Win rate)
Australia (Played 42, Won 17, Lost 24, Drawn 1, 40% Win rate)
New Zealand (Played 35, Won 7, Lost 27, Drawn 1, 20% Win rate)
South Africa (Played 36, Won 12, Lost 22, Drawn 2, 33% Win rate)

England Under 20s Records:

Under 20 6 Nations (Ranked 1st Overall):

Grand Slam - 2008, 2011
1st - 2008, 2011, 2012, 2013
2nd - 2010
3rd - 2009

Junior World Rugby Championship (Ranked 2nd Overall):
World Champions - 2013
2nd - 2008, 2009, 2011
4th - 2010
7th - 2012



ENGLAND 2014 FIXTURE LIST:

February

Sat 1st 17:00 RBS Six Nations France 26-24 England Parc Des Princes, Paris
Sat 8th 17:00 RBS Six Nations Scotland 0-20 England Murrayfield, Edinburgh
Sat 22nd 16:00 RBS Six Nations England 13-10 Ireland Twickenham, London

March

Sun 9th 15:00 RBS Six Nations England vs Wales Twickenham, London
Sat 15th 12:30 RBS Six Nations Italy vs England San Siro, Milan

June

June 7th Summer Tour New Zealand vs England Eden Park, Auckland
June 14th Summer Tour New Zealand vs England Stadium Christchurch, Christchurch
June 21st Summer Tour New Zealand vs England Wellington National Stadium, Wellington

November

Sat 8th QBE Autumn Internationals  England vs New Zealand Twickenham, London
Sat 15th QBE Autumn Internationals  England vs South Africa Twickenham, London
Sat 22nd QBE Autumn Internationals  England vs Samoa Twickenham, London
Sat 29th QBE Autumn Internationals England vs Australia Twickenham, London


ENGLAND UNDER 20 INTERNATIONALS

Fri Jan 31st France Under-20 23-15 England Under-20 Stade Leo Lagrange, Draguignan (7.55pm)
Fri Feb 7th Scotland Under-20 15-48 England Under-20 Netherdale, Galashiels (7.30pm)
Sat Feb 22nd England Under-20 33-9 Ireland Under-20 Franklin’s Gardens, Northampton (6.15pm, live on Sky Sports)
Fri Mar 7th England Under-20 v Wales Under-20 Kingston Park, Newcastle (7.45pm, live on Sky Sports)
Fri Mar 14th Italy Under-20 v England Under-20 Campo Comunale La Colombera, Brescia (kick off  TBC)

Junior World Championship 2014 - Italy
If as previous tournament rules are upheld, England as World Champions will play the 6th placed, 7th placed and the promotee from last years IRB World Trophy from 2013. This would mean England are drawn in a pool with Argentina, Australia and promotees and hosts Italy.

Spoiler:

British and Irish Lions

Australia 2013 Tour

Spoiler:

IRB World Rankings:

1 New Zealand 93.81
2 South Africa 89.34
3 Australia  86.88
4 England  85.47
5 Ireland 80.76
6 Wales 80.59
7 France 80.56
8 Samoa 77.34
9 Argentina 76.44
10 Scotland 76.35
11 Fiji 74.21
12 Tonga 73.21
13 Japan 72.06
14 Italy 72.04
15 Canada 70.75
16 Georgia 69.07
17 Romania 67.47
18 USA 67.41
19 Russia 61.14
20 Uruguay 60.77


2013 International Form Guide

Spoiler:

2014 International Form Guide

1.England Played 3, Won 2, Drawn 0, Lost 1, 67% Win Rate
2.Ireland Played 3, Won 2, Drawn 0, Lost 1, 67% Win Rate
3.Wales Played 3, Won 2, Drawn 0, Lost 1, 67% Win Rate
4.France Played 3, Won 2, Drawn 0, Lost 1, 67% Win Rate
5.Scotland Played 3, Won 1, Drawn 0, Lost 2, 33% Win Rate
6.Italy Played 3, Won 0, Drawn 0, Lost 3, 0% Win Rate
7.New Zealand Played 0, Won 0, Drawn 0, Lost 0, 0% Win Rate
8.South Africa Played 0, Won 0, Drawn 0, Lost 0, 0% Win Rate
9.Australia Played 0, Won 0, Drawn 0, Lost 0, 0% Win Rate
10.Argentina Played 0, Won 0, Drawn 0, Lost 0, 0% Win Rate

So 2 from 3 heading into the Wales game this 6Ns.

Was just thinking about 23 possibilities coming into the next match, with Yarde returning to action, Billy V pulling a knock, Wilson getting some serious work into him. Attwood starting to have a real influence off the bench.

A first glance at the 23 below imho:

1. Joe Marler
2. Dylan Hartley
3. David Wilson
4. Joe Launchbury
5. Courtney Lawes
6. Tom Wood
7. Chris Robshaw
8. Ben Morgan
9. Danny Care
10. Owen Farrell
11. Jonny May
12. Billy Twelvetrees
13. Luther Burrell
14. Jack Nowell
15. Mike Brown

Substitutes:
16. Mako Vunipola
17. Tom Youngs
18. Henry Thomas
19. David Attwood
20. Matt Kvesic
21. Lee Dickson
22. George Ford
23. Alex Goode/Marland Yarde/Brad Barritt

I haven't really worked out what he wants with 23 shirt? Kvesic covers the whole backrow, can be an out and out 7 and has hit a bit of form since working around England, chance of a start? Maybe Johnson, Ewers or Dickinson??

Thoughts?
4.

I said we'd win, and we did win.

Sounds arrogant, but there's a confidence about the side, not an arrogance. There's no chippiness, just a desperate desire to win, and play well for each other.

Here's my ratings for Wales game based upon watching the match 3 times now:

The squad for Italy has been named and it seems pretty set in stone what the side will be, but here's my crack at the 23 in order:

1. Joe Marler
2. Dylan Hartley
3. David Wilson
4. Joe Launchbury
5. Courtney Lawes
6. Tom Wood
7. Chris Robshaw (Capt)
8. Ben Morgan
9. Danny Care
10. Owen Farrell
11. Jonny May
12. Billy Twelvetrees
13. Luther Burrell
14. Jack Nowell
15. Mike Brown

Subs:
16. Mako Vunipola
17. Tom Youngs
18. Henry Thomas
19. David Attwood
20. Tom Johnson
21. Lee Dickson
22. George Ford
23. Manu Tuilagi

Notes: Lancaster seems to want the side that finished and earned the right to play again given the licence to do so against Italy. I'd expect England to want to put width on the ball, apply pressures to the corner and maul over for a few early scores to give the side a buffer.

Once the italians come back, he'll want the side to soak up what pressure they apply, especially with Castrogiovanni out, and England to run a few scores towards the end of the first half.

Second Half if the gap is big enough, George Ford and Manu Tuilagi will immediately come off the bench, and hopefully they play well and it turns into a run away. Ford to excel would be a desired outcome for England fans.

Don't think we'll win the 6 Nations, BOD will get the last laugh hopefully against a poor french side, but 40 pts is not out of the question.

No Alex Goode as a utility back will also please some fans as well. Backs on the bench are the strongest impact we've had in a very long time.

Dos look the expected team. Backs off the bench seem more impactful than suited to being subbed on for injury in the 3rd minute. Hope we do go well but our last two wins have been very close over Italy, and it wasn't until the last quarter Vs Ireland they went to pieces having made a lot of tackles.

I've really enjoyed the Henry Thomas cameos, wouldn't mind seeing him get more than the last few minutes. Hopefully both he and Ford come on after 50 minutes

Lancaster always takes a third development hooker, so it's possible LCD could go. Lanc spoke of including him as soon as possible.

What I'd like to see (not what we will see):
1. Joe Marler
2. Tom Youngs
3. David Wilson
4. Joe Launchbury
5. David Attwood
6. Chris Robshaw
7. Matt Kvesic
8. Ben Morgan
9. Danny Care
10. George Ford
11. Marland Yarde
12. Billy Twelvetrees
13. Manu Tuilagi
14. Christian Wade
15. Mike Brown

Substitutes:
16. Matt Mullan
17. Luke Cowan Dickie
18. Henry Thomas
19. Graham Kitchener
20. Dave Ewers
21. Ben Youngs
22. Freddie Burns
23. Ollie Devoto

Manu to cover wing, although I don't like it, Lancaster can see him as a winger potentially.

I still believe we can win 1 test. Not the series, 1 test will do.

He might see Brown as better cover still for the wing. I wouldn't put Devoto in the 23 shirt though, that shirt belongs to someone with more pace even if you wanted to say Devoto would give you cover at 15. One test is a big ask still, and would probably represent a decent tour. The best England team I've seen snuck a win down in NZ, and this NZ team is much better than the '03 side.

Any link to him saying that no-one in the final is going at all? Because everything I can find, including more recent stuff, is saying that they only miss the first test.

Ian Ritchie has stated;

keeping players in the Aviva Premiership will form a central part of his post-World Cup strategy.
"We should not be behind in making it economically right for people to continue to play in this country," he said.
"I don't like a scenario where someone says 'I can get blank when I go overseas'. We should be able to match all of that over here.
"We should be absolutely at the top of the pile here. We should help to try and achieve that and we should be unashamed of that."
Premiership clubs operate under a salary cap that increases to £5 million next season, while England players benefit from a match fee of £15,000.
Negotiations between the RFU and Premiership Rugby, the body that represents the 12 top flight clubs, are set to begin on a new deal over releasing players for international matches. Ritchie hinted that the RFU is hoping for a collaborative approach to convincing England players to remain at home.
"The Premiership salary cap is not a matter for me, it is a matter for Premiership Rugby," he said.
"Players get what they get from the club, from England, which is not an insignificant contribution, and then there's the commercial stuff that he generates off the back of that.
"What we have to do is make that as attractive as possible. I want to see really successful club rugby and that applied across all levels.
"We want to see that and that means they need to be commercially successful. We shouldn't be seen as being in competition with that, we should be seen as helping and assisting it."

Read more at http://www.espnscrum.com/2015-rugby-world-cup/rugby/story/221871.html#I7fVr0BGsQveb2qS.99

Hoping for a major interest boost off the back of the RWC I guess. BT are probably banking on the same thing in many ways.

On a completely separate note, if Wade isn't fit for NZ, there's talk that they'll send him to the USA to sprint training (I guess american football type camps). Few folks asking why he doesn't just go to Margot Wells, but I suspect the American camps are extremely professional considering the cash in american football, and will offer more than just straight line speed.