Mike Tindall has questioned the decision of England head coach Eddie Jones to hand Ollie Thorley a call-up.
He said: “I like Ollie Thorley but what the f**k is he doing in that squad?
“He’s young and he’s up and coming, and I’m not saying he can’t be there, but where England are at the moment, in preparations for a Six Nations and a World Cup, he’s not there.”
“He (Eddie Jones) said he’s picked this squad purely to play against Ireland. Is there any way he’s going to pick Ollie Thorley to play against Ireland?
He was the November Premiership player of the month but World Cup winner Tindall feels he is not ready for international level yet.
“I’m not saying Ollie Thorley couldn’t be there [at the World Cup], but that’s what your World Cup warm-up games are for,” said Tindall.
“I still think he has a lot of developing to do in terms of defensive and high ball positioning.
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“Obviously, give him the ball in his hand and he can make things happen.
“But you are not going to put him against Ireland. If you go back to watch the Gloucester-Munster game, they just put little kicks in behind him and pulled the Gloucester back three apart.
“You would never send him to the Aviva and expect him to play in that game.”
Tindall later added though: “I’m not having a go at Ollie Thorley, I love him, I played with him when I was 35 and he was 17 and he played better than me.”