"Go-to skipper" - Sir Clive Woodward picks his England XV for Wales with new captain

Wednesday, 23 February 2022 at 08:00

byRugby Rucker

Sir Clive Woodward has revealed his gun England XV to face Wales with a couple of surprise inclusions and a new captain.

The legendary former boss, who won the grandest prize of them all back in 2003, said that Eddie Jones should be treating every game as if it is Rugby World Cup final.

Woodward, who is 30/1 to replace under fire Aussie, hasn't been afraid to criticize the current boss openly whether in his column for the Mail Online or as a pundit on ITV.

Picking his XV, the 66-year-old reiterated that he'd start this team with the intention of them finishing the game.

Sir Clive Woodward: England XV

BACK-THREE:

15. Freddie Steward (Leicester Tigers)
14. Max Malins (Saracens)
11. Adam Radwan (Newcastle Falcons)
for Jack Nowell

Woodward wrote: "Jack Nowell is, of course, a fine, dependable player at wing — but there is nothing much we don’t know about Jack. It’s high time we saw what Adam Radwan and Ollie Hassell-Collins are made of in terms of international rugby."

Freddie Steward of England goes over for a try during the Autumn Nations Match between England and Australia at Twickenham on 13 November 2021. Photo: Micah Crook/PPAUK

CENTRES:

13. Henry Slade (Exeter Chiefs)
12. Manu Tuilagi (Sale Sharks) for Joe Marchant

Henry Slade of England kicks the conversion during the Autumn Nations Match between England and Tonga at Twickenham Stoop on 6 November 2021. Photo: Tom Sandberg/PPAUK

HALFBACKS:

10. Marcus Smith (Harlequins)
9. Harry Randall (Bristol Bears)

Woodward wrote: "Ben Youngs can’t go on for ever. He was OK last week and he is still international class, but we need to know about Randall at some stage and Raffi Quirke below him. Scrum-half is such an important position, you need two or three tried and tested operators there. And Youngs needs to know that he is under serious pressure for his starting spot."

Marcus Smith of England celebrates after winning during the Autumn Nations Match between England and South Africa at Twickenham Stadium on 20 November 2021. Photo: Tom Sandberg/PPAUK

FRONT-ROW:

1. Ellis Genge (Leicester Tigers)
2. Luke Cowan-Dickie (Exeter Chiefs) for Jamie George
3. Kyle Sinckler (Bristol Bears) for Will Stuart

Ellis Genge of England (digitally altered) during the Autumn Nations Match between England and Tonga at Twickenham Stoop on 6 November 2021. Photo: Tom Sandberg/PPAUK

SECOND-ROW:

4. Maro Itoje (Saracens) replace Curry as captain
5. Courtney Lawes (Northampton Saints) for Nick Isiekwe (Saracens)

Woodward wrote: "Without knowing the dynamics of relationships I would go for Maro Itoje. Iconic figure, automatic selection at lock, universally respected, intelligent, articulate and likely to learn from mistakes.

"Like any player he is not perfect and has made mistakes: he’s given away too many penalties and has overdone the vocals and flaunting celebrations in the face of opponents when winning a turnover.

"What is certain is that England need to settle on their skipper sooner rather than later. Great teams have great ‘go-to” skippers."

Maro Itoje of England during the Autumn Nations Match between England and Tonga at Twickenham Stoop on 6 November 2021. Photo: Tom Sandberg/PPAUK

BACK-ROW:

6. Sam Simmonds (Exeter Chiefs) for Charlie Ewels
7. Tom Curry (Sale Sharks)
8. Alex Dombrandt (Harlequins)

Woodward wrote: "I have long argued for Alex Dombrandt to be given a start at No 8 and am genuinely excited by the attacking possibilities England now have at 8, 9 and 10.

"However, I didn’t expect Sam Simmonds to be dropped. I wanted him at blindside where he would prosper in an attack-minded environment. Simmonds is the one England back-rower who can switch positions with ease."

Sam Simmonds (Exeter Chiefs, 7 caps) during England Rugby training session at The Lensbury Hotel, Teddington, London on 28 Sept 2021. Photo: Phil Mingo/PPAUK