Sam Underhill OUT: Ranking 11 England back-row options for November Tests as Steve Borthwick faces latest big call
Sam Underhill (right) will miss England's November Tests, which opens the door for Henry Pollock (centre) and Courtney Lawes (left)
England will be without Bath back-rower Sam Underhill for November’s Nations Championship Tests, with the 30-year-old set for surgery on a ruptured bicep.
“There are a few types of injuries where I want to know straight away,” said Bath’s head of rugby Johann van Graan. “That’s why I went straight down (to the tunnel).
“At the time it was very much, ‘we need to wait for the scan, but this could be a bicep rupture’, and the scan turned out to be exactly that. He will get operated on on Thursday.”
“That’s a few months out of the game, so it’s not ideal from Sam’s point of view,” the head of rugby said. “But as with every player who gets injured at this club, we’ll do our best to get him back as soon as possible.”
“It is always disappointing for every player when you get injured in round one, because you have just come through a big pre-season and you are just getting started. But injuries are part and parcel of this game. Sam has had a few big ones, and I am sure he will be back as soon as possible and we are looking forward to welcoming him back, whenever that is in December or January.”
That initial timeframe now means Underhill will not be available for the national side for their Tests against Australia, Japan, New Zealand and their finals weekend opponents, with head coach Steve Borthwick now set to look for a replacement.
England star Sam Underhill OUT of Nations Championship Tests as Bath issue injury update
But, what options does he have at his disposal? Well, here’s our in-depth look at England’s back-row depth chart.
Test starters: Ollie Chessum, Henry Pollock, Ben Earl
Underhill’s now-confirmed absence will certainly cause Borthwick some headaches across his back-row unit, but it does mean the grouping of Ollie Chessum, Henry Pollock and Ben Earl are the likely front-runners to start in November.
While the continued selection of Chessum and Earl from the end of the Six Nations and July’s Nations Championship campaign will give England some much-needed continuity heading into the autumn, at a time when they are looking for that after rectifying their losing run with back-to-back wins, this also feels like the right time to bring Pollock into the starting line-up and properly unleash him. He is very much a confidence player, and he’s certainly in good spirits at the moment, but this feels like a very big campaign for him at Test level. If he performs, then he could become one of the cornerstones of the side moving forward.
This also feels like quite a balanced back-row, too. Chessum gives them that big bopper and lineout operator on the blindside flank, while Pollock and Earl can take the load off one another in the carrying and look to properly inject themselves into proceedings. Crucially, they can both swap between flanker and eight, which in turn gives the back-row a nice, fluid dynamic.
In the mix: Tom Curry, Guy Pepper, Chandler Cunningham-South
Just underneath them are Tom Curry, Guy Pepper and Chandler Cunningham-South. All three have been consistent members of the extended England squad for a good while now, with Curry and Pepper also regularly in Borthwick’s match-day 23, and they should be right in the mix for November as well.
Want more from Planet Rugby? Add us as a preferred source on Google to your favourites list for world-class coverage you can trust.
There is also a world where all three play, with Borthwick utilising Cunningham-South as a utility forward in recent times and also liking to have two back-rowers on his bench in a 6:2 split. England’s ‘Pom Squad’ was a big weapon for them back in November 2025, and even if they have turned away from that slightly due to injuries across the park, it could come back into their play this campaign.
All three will likely be in the conversation for a starting role as well, which is a reflection of the depth England have in the back-row right now.
Outside bets: Ted Hill, Fitz Harding, Jack Kenningham, Ethan Roots
Elsewhere, the unit of Ted Hill, Fitz Harding, Jack Kenningham and Ethan Roots will also be hoping they can get into the Test picture, following decent starts to the PREM campaign. They have both flirted with the England squad in recent times, with Hill being dipped in and out of the Test squad, Roots returning to the picture with England A after winning the last of his senior Test caps in 2024, Harding captaining England A, and Kenningham also making it into senior training squads despite not winning a cap, but this could be the window they need to properly get their foot in the door.
It’s hard to split this group up, really, even if they offer slightly different things; Hill gives Borthwick that utility lock-flanker option to run off the bench or in the starting side, Harding and Roots also add a layer of versatility with their ability to shift between flanker and eight almost at will, while Kenningham is also a real fetching flanker and would blend in nicely alongside England’s existing options. That will certainly give Borthwick food for thought, and there’s a very real possibility any of them could get the call-up.
Bolter: Courtney Lawes
Not a bolter in the traditional sense given his Test experience, but is this the time to bring him back into the mix?
The Sale Sharks forward is certainly on the radar of England once again, with Borthwick omitting him from the initial alignment camp earlier this month in order to see how he goes in the PREM, but he should have a decent bank of games under his belt come selection time ahead of the November Tests.
Lawes ticks a fair few boxes for England right now, too. On the pitch, he would be that sort of lock-flanker type of player to slot onto the blindside that England are moving towards with Chessum, but more than anything, he would add real experience and leadership to the squad as they look to build on an improved July campaign.
It still feels a big call to bring him back into the mix, but you wouldn’t gasp if you saw his name in the final squad either.
