NOWELL RULED OUT OF AUSSIE SHOWDOWN:
Cokanasiga keeps place ... and Manu’s on bench
ENGLAND have lost the services of a second wing in the space of three days as Jack Nowell has followed Chris Ashton in being ruled out of the autumn finale against Australia.
However, when Eddie Jones names his side this morning, Manu Tuilagi is set to appear among the replacements. After so much intrigue about the Leicester centre’s availability during this November campaign, he has shaken off yet another groin injury and is finally poised to make a first appearance for his country since March,h, 2016.
Nowell, Exeter’s er’s 25- year- old Lion, on, started at outside de centre against t Japan last weekend, only to revert to a wide role after half an hour as Ashton was forced off with a sore calf. The veteran Sale wing had series-ending dow damage and now Nowell has suffereded a hamstring injury during training this week.
With Anthony Watson already on the casualty list, England head coach Eddie Jones would have ideally wanted Nowell in his Saturday’s match-day 23.
But now he has been removed from contention for the last of four Quilter Tests at Twickenham, Bath’s giant rookie wing Joe Cokanasiga appears destined to retain his place in the starting XV. Although the 21-year-old made a try-scoring debut appearance five days ago, Jones had indicated that he was most likely to be considered for a bench role this time. But the loss of Ashton and Nowell has aided his selection cause.
An experimental line-up was deployed against Japan but England should have a more familiar look on Saturday — certainly in the back line. Ben Youngs and Owen Farrell are expected to be reunited at half-back, with Ben Te’o and Henry Slade back together in midfield. Cokanasiga will join Jonny May and Elliot Daly in a reshuffled back three.
Up front, expect starting recalls for Ben Moon, Dylan Hartley and Kyle Sinckler in the front row, along with Brad Shields and Sam Underhill in the back row. That would mean Courtney Lawes shifts position to lock and Mark Wilson goes back to No 8, with Nathan Hughes ready to wreak havoc from the benbench after his ban. MMeanwhile, defence ccoach John Mitchell eMitchell has called on tthe players to use opponents’ dislike of England as mmotivation, starting istarting against their oold foes from DoDown Under. ‘ I don’t think too many people like us as EnglandEngland, do they?’ said the New Zealander, who joined Jones’s staff in September.
‘It’s important to understand that and realise we can actually reverse that in terms of our own thinking.
‘When you don’t get it right you just have to look at the satisfaction and the gloating on the other side to realise how important it is. So you might as well get in first and get it done.’
Mitchell last coached England under Sir Clive Woodward at the turn of the century. His final match on the sidelines was the 2000 loss to Scotland at Murrayfield which ended English Grand Slam hopes.
‘I still remember training at a university in Scotland and just the language,’ he added. ‘Then at Wembley walking down the tunnel at half-time (against Wales in 1999) a little bit of a goober (spit) ended up on my tracksuit.
‘To have had that experience and receive the emotions that come from that on the other side, it certainly does motivate me personally.
‘I still think there’s a place for you to realise how much it means and the fact you hate coming second to somebody that you dislike.’