Ella brings Solomona up to speed for Pumas

England attack coach Glen Ella is providing extra video tutorials to Denny Solomona to help bring the rugby league recruit up to speed for the two-test series in Argentina.

Ella previously helped Lote Tuqiri, Wendell Sailor and Mat Rogers make the transition to union when he was Eddie Jones’s assistant with Australia, a role he has reprised in South America. Ella has been hugely impressed with the young talent on the tour – particularly the Curry twins and the Northampton playmaker Harry Mallinder – and is spending extra time with Sale Sharks wing Solomona, who could make his debut against the Pumas on Saturday just six months after crossing codes.

“I’m pretty sure he’s ready,” said Ella, who performed a similar role on last summer’s tour to Australia and has known Jones for 53 years. “We’ve trained very hard, very intensely over the last couple of weeks, and anyone who gets picked will be ready.

“We’re doing extra video sessions with him, correcting where they’ve gone right and what they’re doing wrong and trying to get them up to speed as quickly as we can. We get everything assessed in training – how quick they get back into position, what they do on the ground, especially the breakdown work with the forwards coaches.”

Flanker Chris Robshaw remains an injury doubt with an ankle problem while fellow back-rowers Sam Underhill, Ben Curry and Nathan Hughes sat out training as a precaution yesterday in Buenos Aires.

Indications are that England will employ a centre partnership of the uncapped Alex Lozowski and Henry Slade for the first Test.