George Ford at fly-half, Itoje leads side at Twickenham
Pepper gets nod with Curry among six Lions on bench
England have omitted Marcus Smith completely from their matchday squad to face Australia on Saturday and confirmed George Ford as their starting fly-half. Head coach Steve Borthwick has also named six British & Irish Lions on his bench with Tom Curry, Ellis Genge and Henry Pollock all named among the replacements.
Instead Borthwick has preferred to put his faith in lower-profile players such as Bath’s Guy Pepper, Sale’s Tom Roebuck and Leicester’s Joe Heyes in a side which also has no place for Bath’s Ollie Lawrence or Exeter’s Henry Slade, both midfield regulars last season. Tommy Freeman will wear 13 having been shifted inside from the wing to form a centre pairing with his Northampton clubmate Fraser Dingwall.
Luke Cowan-Dickie is set to win his 50th England cap off the bench but this will be the first England appearance at Twickenham for Pepper and Pollock. “We’re excited to begin our Nations Series campaign against Australia and to test ourselves against a strong, in-form side,” said Borthwick.
