England squad: Steve Borthwick names new captain as five uncapped players selected for Nations Championship
Jamie George (right) will lead England during the Nations Championship
Jamie George will lead England into the Nations Championship games in July, after being appointed as Test captain once more.
The experienced hooker takes over the role from Maro Itoje, who will be rested this summer.
England head coach Steve Borthwick had previously said there were ‘ongoing conversations’ over Itoje’s involvement in July, but after George Martin, Ollie Chessum, Charlie Ewels and Alex Coles all came through this weekend’s respective England XV and Northampton Saints fixtures unscathed, he has opted to rest his skipper.
It is understood that this will not affect his captaincy post-July, with Itoje expected to retain the duties for November’s Nations Championship Tests, as well as next year’s Six Nations and Rugby World Cup.
Jamie George to captain England during Nations Championship
George is no stranger to the captaincy role, serving as full-time skipper back in 2024 and later acting as joint-captain alongside George Ford for their tour of the Americas last year, before joining up with the British and Irish Lions, and once again takes over the position for the summer.
Elsewhere, Borthwick has also named five uncapped players in his extended 36-man group in the form of Benhard Janse van Rensburg, Noah Caluori, Greg Fisilau, George Kloska and Vilikesa Sela. All five have previously been involved with the senior squad, with Janse van Rensburg, Caluori, Kloska and Sela featuring in the recent England XV fixture against France XV.
PREM Rugby finalists Fisilau, Henry Slade, Immanuel Feyi-Waboso, Henry Pollock, Tommy Freeman, Coles, George Furbank and Alex Mitchell also come into the group following the end of their domestic duties, but Archie McParland does not feature after suffering a deep cut to his knee in Northampton’s 26-17 win on Saturday.
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Guy Pepper, Ellis Genge, Arthur Clark and Luke Cowan-Dickie have also been included in the wider group, after previously coming into camp for rehabilitation, while Ben Spencer returns to the squad.
Commenting on his squad, Borthwick said: “We’ve selected a squad with a good blend of experience and emerging talent.
“The Nations Championship presents an exciting challenge for this group. We will face strong opposition in demanding environments, with extensive travel, and changes in climate all testing the squad throughout the tournament.
“I am sure by preparing well and continuing to demand the highest standards from one another every day, we will be well placed to meet the challenge of a very demanding summer schedule.”
England begin their campaign against the Springboks on July 4, before facing Fiji and Argentina in the remaining Nations Championship Tests, which are all available to watch on ITV Sport.
England 36-man Nations Championship squad in full
Forwards: Ollie Chessum, Arthur Clark, Alex Coles, Luke Cowan-Dickie, Tom Curry, Theo Dan, Ben Earl, Charlie Ewels, Greg Fisilau, Ellis Genge, Jamie George (c), Joe Heyes, Ted Hill, George Kloska, George Martin, Beno Obano, Asher Opoku-Fordjour, Guy Pepper, Henry Pollock, Vilikesa Sela
Backs: Seb Atkinson, Noah Caluori, Immanuel Feyi-Waboso, George Ford, Tommy Freeman, George Furbank, Benhard Janse van Rensburg, Alex Mitchell, Cadan Murley, Max Ojomoh, Henry Slade, Fin Smith, Marcus Smith, Ben Spencer, Freddie Steward, Jack van Poortvliet
