England squad winners and losers: ‘Generational talent’ within touching distance of Test debut and ‘X-factor’ winger shows injury progress

Following the announcement of England’s 28-man squad to prepare for the Calcutta Cup grudge match against Scotland, here are our winners and losers. 

Winners

Henry Pollock

Generational talent Henry Pollock’s inclusion in this 28-man squad shows he is within touching distance of a Test debut. With the squad narrowed down from 35, the players still at Pennyhill Park must be firmly in Steve Borthwick’s thoughts for possible inclusion against Scotland, and Pollock is clearly one of them now. Yes, Tom Curry missing training has helped his cause, but England still have some decent back-row options at their disposal, so it highlights how highly the Northampton Saints man is thought of. Could he win his maiden Test cap next weekend?

Ted Hill

This will give the Bath lock a huge boost, considering he has been in and out of the squad for a while now, but Ted Hill looks to be pushing his way up the pecking order a bit now. With England deploying a 6:2 split in both of their Six Nations Tests so far, Hill’s ability to play both lock and flanker could see him jump into the 23-man squad, and his inclusion in this smaller squad proves Borthwick has him in mind for Scotland.

Oscar Beard

Like Hill, Oscar Beard’s versatility makes him a great option for the 6:2 bench, and his inclusion shows he is right in the mix to feature against Scotland. Keeping him in and around the squad will also be an invaluable learning experience, given it’s basically the full-strength squad.

George Ford

He’s found himself down the pecking order a bit this Six Nations, with Smith squared starting respective Tests, but Ford’s inclusion probably highlights just how important he still is within this squad. Ford has long been thought of a coach on the field, and that leadership and experience is probably what’s made Borthwick want to keep him around.

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Tom Roebuck

It’s not been easy going for Roebuck in his early Test career, but he is certainly still in the mix for a call-up into the squad for Scotland. Wing is a fairly open spot at the minute, with Cadan Murley injured and Ollie Sleightholme still getting back up to speed, so this could be a great chance for Roebuck to jump ahead in the pecking order with the pressure lifted slightly.

Immanuel Feyi-Waboso

Borthwick might have his chosen winger back sooner rather than later, as Immanuel Feyi-Waboso’s inclusion for rehab – albeit one day only – shows he’s nearing a return to fitness. The Exeter winger has been Borthwick’s bolted-on starter on the wing since his maiden start against Ireland last year, and would add some serious X-factor to the squad if he comes back this Six Nations.

Steve Borthwick

The England head coach is also a huge winner after this squad announcement, as he has been able to keep his main squad together without too much disruption. The knocks to George Martin and Tom Curry are blows, but they will be back sooner rather than later, and around them still has some serious talent at his disposal. This announcement also suggests he has finally settled on his 23-man squad plus a few extras, with the entirety of the squad from the France win still at Pennyhill Park in some fashion.

Losers

Rehab club

The aforementioned duo of Martin and Curry have suffered slight set-backs, just when they looked to be back to their best. They are still expected to be fit and available for Scotland, however, but both men have had their injury problems in recent weeks so will still be a potential cause for concern.

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Ben Spencer

In another world, Ben Spencer is an England centurion. The Bath scrum-half has just been unable to break into Borthwick’s squad, despite fairly strong showings when afforded the opportunity to play, and he now finds himself outside of the 28-man squad. You’d imagine he will be back in the extended 35-man squad though.

Bevan Rodd

Despite his utterly ridiculous form, Bevan Rodd still finds himself on the outskirts of the England squad, and that’s been proven by this selection. The Sale Sharks man was in a lot of people’s squads ahead of the Championship, but Fin Baxter has recaptured his best form in his outings this Six Nations, which means Rodd is heading back to the North West this week.

Asher Opoku-Fordjour

Joining Rodd in the car back to Sale is Asher Opoku-Fordjour. Like Rodd, a lot of people assumed his club form would be rewarded with a spot in the 23, however he has found himself below Joe Heyes in the pecking order this Championship.

Fraser Dingwall

You could excuse Fraser Dingwall for feeling a little hard done by this past week, given the rest of the Northampton contingent all featured in the win against France. The centre has, despite his club form, fallen down the order slightly and given the form of both Ollie Lawrence and Henry Slade this Six Nations, might have to wait a while longer to return to the picture.

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