Sinckler to miss Australia trip in blow for Jones
Prop adds to tour injury woes for under-fire England coach Resurgent Australia will look to exploit potential weakness
England’s preparations for their summer tour to Australia suffered a blow yesterday when tighthead prop Kyle Sinckler was ruled out of the three-test series with a back injury. Sinckler has featured in only two Champions Cup matches for Bristol Bears since the Six Nations, when he tweaked his back, which has required careful management.
While the issue will not require surgery, it was agreed between England and Bristol that Sinckler would be given the summer off to ensure he is firing for next season.
Wasps second row Joe Launchbury is another conspicuous absentee in a 35-man training squad.
The loss of Sinckler adds to the sense of storm clouds gathering around England head coach Eddie Jones, who survived a vote of confidence from the Rugby Football Union after another two-win Six Nations campaign.
Jones has won his past eight matches against the Wallabies, but the Australian franchises have been resurgent in Super Rugby this season. Jones had already lost experienced centres Manu Tuilagi and Henry Slade to shoulder and knee operations respectively, while Sam Simmonds, the No8, is also unavailable. The loss of Sinckler will be felt even more acutely given England’s lack of depth at tighthead prop.
Bath’s Will Stuart deputised for Sinckler in the final Six Nations match against France, but has only four Test starts.
The other tightheads included in Jones’s squad for a three-day training camp leading into the fixture against the Barbarians on June 19 include the uncapped Biyi Alo and Patrick Schickerling, and Trevor Davison, who can play both sides of the scrum.
The squad features none of the Premiership semi-finalists, so Leicester’s Joe Heyes and Harlequins’ Will Collier, who has had a standout season, could also come into the equation.
Historically, England have dominated Australia at the set-piece, but the Wallabies have made great strides under scrum coach Petrus du Plessis and may sense vulnerability in Sinckler’s absence.
Wasps’ Alo and Namibian-born Schickerling, of Exeter Chiefs, are among five new faces in England’s training camp.
Bristol flanker Sam Jeffries, Gloucester loose forward Freddie Clarke and Wasps fly-half Charlie Atkinson are also included for the
first time. If England are looking thin up front, then suddenly they are flush with options in the back three through Jonny May, who returned for Gloucester on Saturday after five months out, and Jack
Nowell, who has recovered from a broken arm.
Another experienced figure, Anthony Watson, will be in camp to rehab from a fresh calf injury, alongside hooker Luke Cowan-dickie (knee).
Alongside those older heads, there is an injection of youth and pace in the form of London Irish trio Ollie Hassell-collins, Tom Parton and Henry Arundell alongside Newcastle flyer Adam Radwan.
The power of Joe Cokanasiga offers an alternate option to a back line that failed to fire during the Six Nations. Jones will add further players to his squad from the losing Premiership semi-finalists, with the match against the Barbarians being internally billed as the last opportunity to earn a place on the plane Down Under.
Jones, who will name a squad for the Barbarians fixture on Sunday, said: “With a number of players unavailable because of the Premiership semi-finals, we’ve got the opportunity to call up some new players.
“It’s a great opportunity to learn about them and see what potential they have to play a part in the Australia tour.
“We look forward to continuing the good work from our last camp in developing this team on and off the pitch.”