Youngs poised to equal record
KOBE: Ben Youngs is set to equal Jonny Wilkinson’s record as England’s most capped back when he is named in the squad for tomorrow’s World Cup clash against the United States in Kobe.
Youngs is certain to be involved for the his side’s pool C encounter as one of only two halfbacks taken to Japan.
The 30yearold will join Wilkinson on 91 caps when he takes the field at the Kobe Misake Stadium, where Leicester teammate and tighthead prop Dan Cole will reach the same milestone.
Only Jason Leonard and Dylan Hartley, who have made 114 and 97 test appearances respectively, are more decorated.
‘‘I remember making my first start for England and Jonny was involved and playing in Australia,’’ Youngs said.
‘‘Jonny’s an icon of the game so to get this accolade is pretty cool.
‘‘It’s gone quick and I remember when I first started some of the players like Simon
Shaw told me to enjoy it because it would go so fast.
‘‘It has been an enjoyable ride. When you first start out it goes fast and you’re in it and not really sure what’s going on.
‘‘And then you get older and understand what gets you there, how you do it and how you sustain it.
‘‘Getting there is almost the easy bit, the hard bit is sustaining it and staying there and being consistent. It is a really exciting bit of my career.’’
Lewis Ludlam’s fairytale four months will continue with his promotion from the bench role he performed against Tonga and into the starting loose forward trio for the US showdown.
It will be the 23yearold’s fourth cap and comes after he was picked for a senior England squad for the first time in late May.
‘‘To play in a World Cup is what you work for. To get a chance to start is incredible,’’ the Northampton flanker said.
England attempted to put a positive spin on its disjointed outing against Tonga, taking refuge in the bonus point and absence of injury, but there were a few dissenting voices in the ranks.
Scrum coach Neal Hatley described the performance as ‘‘scratchy’’ while hooker Jamie George admitted ‘‘there’s frustration in the way we made a lot of mistakes’’. — BPA