"7 minute hat-trick" - 5 players Steve Borthwick must call-up after this weekend
Rugby NewsSunday, 15 January 2023 at 09:22
Head coach Steve Borthwick doesn’t give off the air of a gambling man but given England have suffered in recent times so perhaps he would be better to twist than stick.
The Autumn Nations Series disaster may have faded into memory but the travails of key players like Owen Farrell and Jonny May remain very relevant. Form has deserted some of his regulars and no international squad can carry too many passengers.
So is it time to consider who might be this year’s late bolter for the 2023 Six Nations? On form, at least one of these players should be under consideration when England’s latest squad is named tomorrow.
Borthwick's men will open their campaign at Twickenham Stadium against Scotland, on Saturday 4 February (4:45pm KO).
They will then host Italy on Sunday 12 February (3pm KO), before travelling to Cardiff for a clash with Wales on Saturday 25 February (4:45pm KO).
England's meet with France will be contested at Twickenham on Saturday 11 March (4:45pm KO), and their final game sees them face Ireland in Dublin on Saturday 18 March (5pm KO).
5 players Steve Borthwick should call-up:
#1. Elliot Daly (Saracens)
Daly scored a first-half hat-trick as Saracens claimed a bonus-point win over Lyon to maintain their winning start in the Heineken Champions Cup.
The speedster bagged his treble in just seven minutes and 20 seconds, on a crisp north London night.
Daly is not part of England’s wider Elite Player Squad, and was not called to Borthwick’s mini camp at the start of the month.
Try one:
Try there:
Try three:
#2. Alex Mitchell (Northampton Saints)
Impressing for Saints against Munster, Mitchell won his only cap as a replacement against Tonga under Eddie Jones in November 2021.
Mitchell has scored four tries in 15 appearances for Northampton this season, taking his overall tally for the club to 37 since arriving from Sale in 2017.
Following his appearance against Tonga, he trained with the England squad before last summer's tour, but missed out as Jack van Poortvliet, Harry Randall and Danny Care were the three number nines selected.
Alex Mitchell of Northampton Saints during the Gallagher Premiership Rugby Match between Harlequins and Northampton Saints at Twickenham Stadium on 27 December 2021. Photo: Tom Sandberg/PPAUK
#3. Josh Hodge (Exeter Chiefs)
Tipped for an England recall 12 months ago, the Exeter speedster opened his account in the Champions Cup with a well-taken try. Would offer out-and-out pace.
#4. Dan Kelly (Leicester Tigers)
The promising centre was one of the star performers for Tigers as they qualified for the Heineken Champions Cup last 16 with a game to spare as they returned to winning ways with a bonus-point victory at Clermont.
England fullback Freddie Steward also impressed as they romped to a. 44-29 bonus-point win on their travels.
#5. Siva Naulago (Bristol Bears)
After recovering from surgery and a hamstring tear, the Fijian player made his season debut and demonstrated flashes of the powerful offensive capability that the Bears had been lacking during his absence.
He was responsible for creating scoring opportunities for Ioan Lloyd and Marcus Bradbury through his offloads and led the team in terms of attacking distance covered with 118 metres.
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- Jordie Barrett over Damian de Allende is far from being correct. The hype around Dupont is also overreaching, he's probably 4th in the world and has been since the 2023 WC. He also avoids certain matchups which is strange. The rest of the list is pretty good apart from minor subjective biases.JasonMarlow16-09-2026
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