Preview: Leicester v Wasps

England internationals George Ford, Jonny May, Dan Cole and Ellis Genge return to the Leicester Tigers squad for Sunday’s Premiership showdown with Wasps at Welford Road.

Ford, May and Cole are named in the starting line-up at the conclusion of the Six Nations Championship, while Genge is included in the matchday squad for the first time since surgery on a shoulder injury.

Valentino Mapapalangi and Luke Hamilton come into the back-row with Mike Williams and Brendon O’Connor ruled out this week by injuries picked up in the win over Worcester Warriors in Round 17.

Will Evans is added to the matchday squad and joins fellow academy graduates Harry Wells and Harry Simmons among the replacements.

Tigers head coach Matt O’Connor said: “The boys who’ve been here throughout the Six Nations period have put us back in the mix and that gives everyone confidence. Now, we have the England players back in and they’re keen to put down a marker around their own club performances.

“Ellis Genge has been training hard and has come back incredibly well from his injury. He is raring to go and really keen to contribute.”

Meanwhile, Joe Launchbury returns from the Six Nations to captain Wasps at Welford Road on Sunday.

He is joined in the black-and-gold line-up by fellow England stars James Haskell and Elliot Daly, both of whom featured prominently against Ireland at Twickenham last week.

Following a two-week break from top-flight action, director of rugby Dai Young is also able to name fit-again Juan de Jongh alongside Jimmy Gopperth in the centre, while loosehead Matt Mullan also returns as part of a powerful bench.

The England international prop is one of six forwards named as replacements in addition to winger Josh Bassett and scrum-half Joe Simpson. Fly-half Danny Cipriani makes his 100th Premiership appearance for Wasps.

Director of Rugby Young said: “It is great to have Launchers, Hask and Elliot back for such a big game.

“Leicester have picked up some good results in the last couple of rounds and it’s a huge game for both teams.

“The set-piece is massive – they pride themselves on that – and the contact area is also going to be a real battle. We’ve got to meet that physicality first to get the opportunity to play.

“This is partly the thinking behind our bench mix, particularly after Rob Miller injured his knee in training.

“I tend to dissect the season into blocks and these next two away games will be crucial in deciding whether we will be fighting to be in the top four or the top two.”

The teams:

Leicester Tigers: 15 Telusa Veainu, 14 Adam Thompstone, 13 Manu Tuilagi, 12 Matt Toomua, 11 Jonny May, 10 George Ford, 9 Sam Harrison, 8 Sione Kalamafoni, 7 Luke Hamilton, 6 Valentino Mapapalangi, 5 Graham Kitchener, 4 Mike Fitzgerald, 3 Dan Cole, 2 Tom Youngs (c), 1 Greg Bateman
Replacements: 16 Tatafu Polota-Nau, 17 Ellis Genge, 18 Logovi’i Mulipola, 19 Harry Wells, 20 Will Evans, 21 Harry Simmons, 22 Mathew Tait, 23 Nick Malouf

Wasps: 15 Willie le Roux, 14 Christian Wade, 13 Juan de Jongh, 12 Jimmy Gopperth, 11 Elliot Daly, 10 Danny Cipriani, 9 Dan Robson, 8 Guy Thompson, 7 Thomas Young, 6 James Haskell, 5 James Gaskell, 4 Joe Launchbury (c), 3 Jake Cooper-Woolley, 2 Tom Cruse, 1 Simon McIntyre
Replacements: 16 TJ Harris, 17 Matt Mullan, 18 Marty Moore, 19 Will Rowlands, 20 Kearnan Myall, 21 Jack Willis, 22 Joe Simpson, 23 Josh Bassett

Venue: Welford Road
Kick-off: 15:00 GMT
Referee: Luke Pearce
Assistant referees: Craig Maxwell-Keys, Jack Makepeace
TMO: David Grashoff