Owen Farrell returns as Marcus Smith shifts position for England’s Rugby World Cup clash

Owen Farrell comes straight into the England starting line-up to face Chile on Saturday after returning from a four-game suspension.

The playmaker was banned following a dangerous tackle on Wales’ Taine Basham, which forced him to miss the opening two matches of the Rugby World Cup.

Farrell captains the side from fly-half, which means that hero from the opening two victories over Argentina and Japan, George Ford, drops to the bench.

Full-back role for Smith

The other fly-half in the squad, Marcus Smith, is also in the 23, with the Harlequins man being trialled from the start at full-back.

Smith has been used as an impact player off the bench in that position and was effective in that role against the Brave Blossoms, but head coach Steve Borthwick wants to see how he does from the start.

He joins new wings Max Malins and Henry Arundell in the back three as the boss makes 12 changes to England’s starting XV.

It is 14 changes if you include the two positional switches, with Elliot Daly moving from wing to centre and Lewis Ludlam going from number eight to blindside.

Daly partners Ollie Lawrence in the midfield, while Jack Willis and Billy Vunipola are in the back-row alongside Ludlam.

Danny Care gets his first start of the World Cup at scrum-half, while in the pack, David Ribbans and George Martin combine in the second-row.

In front of that duo are mobile props Bevan Rodd and Kyle Sinckler, who are on either side of the athletic hooker Theo Dan.

The bench is comprised of Jack Walker, Joe Marler, Will Stuart, Ollie Chessum, Ben Earl, Ben Youngs and Joe Marchant.

“One of the many great things about the Rugby World Cup is that the tournament provides an excellent opportunity to play against teams that we rarely have a chance to see,” Borthwick said.

“It is for that reason that we are particularly looking forward to testing ourselves against Chile on Saturday.

“Having watched our next opponent closely, we know that we will have to prepare and play well against a committed Chile team.

“As we head to the next round, it is only right that I once again pay tribute to our excellent supporters, who I know will be right behind us in Lille this weekend.”

The team

England: 15 Marcus Smith, 14 Henry Arundell, 13 Elliot Daly, 12 Ollie Lawrence, 11 Max Malins, 10 Owen Farrell (c), 9 Danny Care, 8 Billy Vunipola, 7 Jack Willis, 6 Lewis Ludlam, 5 George Martin, 4 David Ribbans, 3 Kyle Sinckler, 2 Theo Dan, 1 Bevan Rodd
Replacements: 16 Jack Walker, 17 Joe Marler, 18 Will Stuart, 19 Ollie Chessum, 20 Ben Earl, 21 Ben Youngs, 22 George Ford, 23 Joe Marchant

Date: Saturday, September 23
Venue: Stade Pierre-Mauroy, Lille
Kick-off: 17:45 local (16:45 BST, 15:45 GMT)
Referee: Jaco Peyper (South Africa)
Assistant Referees: Pierre Brousset (France), Andrea Piardi (Italy)
TMO: Marius Jonker (South Africa)

READ MORE: WATCH: Dan Cole’s PRICELESS ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin impression