Dropping of players is reversal of roles: Jones

London: Scrum-half Ben Youngs is among the senior players left out as England make five changes to their starting XV to face Scotland. Willi Heinz replaces Youngs at nine, with flanker Lewis Ludlam in for Courtney Lawes in the wake of defeat by France on the opening weekend.

Prop Mako Vunipola and lock George Kruis return, with Jonathan Joseph replacing injured centre Manu Tuilagi. Saracens’ Ben Earl is set for a debut as one of six forwards on the bench.

Bath hooker Tom Dunn could also win his first cap as he joins Lawes and Joe Launchbury, who has recovered from a knee injury, among the replacements.

Dunn was recalled to the squad when

Luke Cowan-Dickie left the team’s training camp on Thursday morning after his wife went into labour.

Joe Marler, who started the defeat by France, is left out of the matchday squad entirely with Ellis Genge as loose-head back-up and Will Stuart covering the other side of the scrum.

“It is just a reversal of roles,” head coach Eddie Jones said.

“We feel, depending on conditions, that the game breaks up and there is more space for his Ben’s running skills which we want to get back into his game. Willi tends to play with a fair bit of control, has a good kicking game and has a calming influence on the people around him.”

Jones also repeated his claim that Scotland indulge in deliberate gamesmanship to try and put off their opponents.

LINE-UP

England: 15 George Furbank, 14 Jonny May, 13 Jonathan Joseph, 12 Owen Farrell (c), 11 Elliot Daly, 10 George Ford, 9 Willi Heinz, 8 Tom Curry, 7 Sam Underhill, 6 Lewis Ludlam, 5 George Kruis, 4 Maro

Itoje, 3 Kyle Sinckler, 2 Jamie George, 1 Mako Vunipola

Replacements: 16 Tom Dunn, 17 Ellis Genge, 18 Will Stuart, 19 Joe Launchbury, 20 Courtney Lawes, 21 Ben Earl, 22 Ben Youngs, 23 Ollie Devoto

Scotland: 15 Stuart Hogg (c), 14 Sean Maitland, 13 Huw Jones, 12 Sam Johnson, 11 Blair Kinghorn, 10 Adam Hastings, 9 Ali Price, 8 Magnus Bradbury, 7 Hamish Watson, 6 Jamie Ritchie, 5 Jonny Gray, 4 Scott Cummings, 3 Zander Fagerson, 2 Fraser Brown, 1 Rory Sutherland

Replacements: 16 Stuart McInally, 17 Allan Dell, 18 Simon Berghan, 19 Ben Toolis, 20 Nick Haining, 21 George Horne, 22 Rory Hutchinson, 23 Chris Harris