England centre Manu Tuilagi was omitted from Steve Borthwick’s first match-day squad for Saturday’s Six Nations opener against Scotland.
Former England captain Borthwick, who took over after Eddie Jones was sacked in December following the team’s worst year since 2008, recalled Joe Marchant instead of Tuilagi for the Calcutta Cup clash at Twickenham.
Marchant will join flyhalf Marcus Smith and England captain Owen Farrell among the backs, with Ollie Lawrence and Anthony Watson, two late call-ups, providing bench cover.
Injury-plagued Tuilagi has won 50 caps in an England career dating back to 2011 and featured in three of their four November Tests.
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The powerful 31-year-old has often been England’s go-to centre when fit and starred in their 2019 World Cup semi-final win over New Zealand, although his repeated absences have frustrated attempts to create a settled midfield.
Borthwick, was the coach at Leicester when Tuilagi, having refused a pay cut when the pandemic put the English Premiership on hold, left the club where he made his name for Sale Sharks.
Dan Kelly, Guy Porter and Matias Moroni then starred in a refreshed midfield as Leicester won last season’s Premiership title.
Ollie Hassell-Collins will make a Test debut on the left wing, with Max Malins and Freddie Steward completing the back three.
Elsewhere in the backs, Jack van Poortvliet will start at scrumhalf, with Leicester team-mate Ben Youngs, England’s most-capped player, on the bench.
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In the pack, Ben Curry has been summoned into a back-row missing his injured twin brother Tom. Maro Itoje partners Ollie Chessum at lock. Jamie George, having come through concussion protocols, starts at hooker.
The combination of Smith, Farrell and Marchant has been seen once before, in the first Test against Australia last year.
Marchant, who will join Stade Francais next season, was dropped after that defeat in Perth and did not appear during Jones’ final November campaign.
His return, alongside Smith could help England implement the plans of attack coach Nick Evans, on secondment from Harlequins.
England are bidding to avoid a third successive defeat by Scotland, who announced their team earlier Thursday, in the latest edition of rugby union’s oldest international match.
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“There are few fixtures in the rugby calendar that excite both players and supporters alike more than the annual Six Nations meeting of the Auld Enemy as they battle for the honour of lifting the Calcutta Cup,” said Borthwick in a statement.
“Another packed Twickenham will witness the start of the next chapter of English rugby in one of the most keenly contested tournaments in the world.
“To a man, the players are determined to play with the commitment, fight and desire that is at the very heart of representing England, the sort of passion that our tremendous supporters rightly expect.”
Steve Borthwick has named the England Men side to face Scotland on Saturday in round one of the Guinness Six Nations ?
— England Rugby (@EnglandRugby) February 2, 2023
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