Jones calls up rookie trio
England coach wants his side to dominate in all areas of games Uncapped trio of Odogwu, Randall and Obano in squad
The uncapped trio of backs Paolo Odogwu and Harry Randall and prop Beno Obano have been called up to Eddie Jones’s 28-man England squad for the Guinness Six Nations, while there is a return from injury for lock Courtney Lawes. Jones said yesterday he wanted to make his team “impossible to play against”.
Head coach Eddie Jones has set England “mission impossible” for the Guinness Six Nations after unveiling a 28-man squad including uncapped backs Paolo Odogwu and Harry Randall.
Jones hailed Wasps flier Odogwu’s line-breaking as potentially “world class” while Randall’s “initiative in attack” forced his selection as a third scrum-half.
After winning the Six Nations and the Autumn Nations Cup last year, Jones has reset a target of nothing less than total domination ahead of the opening match against Scotland at Twickenham on Feb 6.
“We want to keep adapting to the opposition and the conditions – and we want to be an impossible team to play against,” Jones said. “We want to be a team that plays at a level that the other teams can’t compete against.
“The ball’s in play for 32 minutes so that’s 32 minutes we want to dominate the opposition. And that’s our goal – to be able to dominate at the set-piece, be able to dominate at the breakdown. When we get the ball and we use the ball, be able to take the ball forward in an effective manner. When we kick, have a great kicking game. When we defend, drive the opposition backwards.”
Uncapped prop Beno Obano is also included while there is a return from injury for lock Courtney Lawes.
Centre Jonathan Joseph and flanker Jack Willis drop to a 12-strong “shadow squad” who will remain at their clubs but be subject to the same testing procedures as those involved in the tournament.
Props Mako Vunipola, who is suffering from an Achilles tendon problem, and Kyle Sinckler, who is serving a two-match suspension, are not involved in either squad but can be picked once they are available for selection.
Odogwu and Randall were eligible for selection by Italy and Wales respectively while another player who had previously been called up by Jones, centre Cameron Redpath, was this week selected by Scotland. “He [Redpath] decided to make himself available for Scotland so that’s his choice,” Jones said. “These boys who have got dual nations they can pick from, they’ve got to make their choice.
“He [Randall] wants to play for England; we want guys who want to play for England. There are a lot of guys out there who have options to play for a number of countries but we want players who want to play for England and he had no hesitation that he wanted to play for England.”
England’s preparations have been far from ideal with forwards coach Matt Proudfoot testing positive for Covid-19, forcing Jones and attack coach Simon Amor to isolate. Skills coach Jason Ryles also pulled out of the tournament to remain in Australia, which has resulted in Jones turning to Jersey Reds’ 27-year-old assistant coach Ed Robinson as a replacement.
“Ed is a young guy I’ve been working with for a while now. All through the lockdown we were having weekly meetings on his coaching at Jersey,” Jones said. “He’s got some great coaching ideas. While we’ll miss Jason we’re lucky to have Ed in the camp.”
While other countries have selected 35 players or more in their squads, Jones believes the imposition of a 28-man limit agreed between the Rugby Football Union and Premiership Rugby will work to England’s benefit. He said: “By Wednesday we normally have 25 players so we will be at an advantage this time by having 28 players so we are delighted by it.”
Many of England’s leading players are lacking in game time after the cancellation of two rounds of European matches. Of the five Saracens players in the squad only Billy Vunipola has played a match since the Autumn Nations Cup in an 80-minute runout against Ealing Trailfinders last week.
Again Jones has taken a positive interpretation that they will be able to hit the ground running after a crucial period of rest.
“I thought he [Vunipola] was robust, got around the field, albeit in a difficult game for him and I know the rest of the boys have been training really hard,” Jones said.
“For those boys in particular who have been at the top of the game and played extra post-season games for the last three or four years, this time period is almost like a godsend to them.
“They are able to freshen their bodies up and do some really good strength and conditioning work and come back as even better players. So I am anticipating those players will come back even better.”
Billy Vunipola
I am really looking forward to seeing how the Saracens boys fare after such a long lay-off, and the form of Billy Vunipola is always most intriguing. He has played once, in his club’s loss to Ealing, but, as our starting No8, you really hope he is fit for international rugby. The back row is so competitive now, and if not totally fit, then Eddie Jones might look at Jack Willis or Earl – or even Mark Wilson at Newcastle – to be the No 8.