England Sevens secures six players

England Sevens captain Tom Mitchell is one of six senior players to sign a new contract providing continuity to the Sevens programme through the Commonwealth Games and Rugby World Cup Sevens.

Mitchell is joined by Richard de Carpentier, Charlie Hayter, Ollie Lindsay-Hague, James Rodwell and Dan Norton as new deal signers.

England head coach Simon Amor explained that the new signings were testament to the strong bond the players have as a group.

“We have a very close group of players, both on and off the field, and their trust, togetherness and team first attitude is reflected in performances,” Amor told the RFU website.

“It is great to have six experienced players extend their commitment to the programme and to provide continuity for next season.”

Next up for England on the World Rugby Sevens Series is Hong Kong, the seventh round of the tournament, where they have been drawn in a pool with South Korea, Samoa and Australia.

And with captain Mitchell on 99 career tries, and Norton level with Kenya’s Collins Injera as the world’s all-time leading try scorer, on 224, it is a leg where potential milestones could be made.

Amor added: “We will work hard to put in our best performances of the year across all three tournament days.”