'Henry Arundell's Return' - 5 latest England hopefuls that are bound for a Summer call-up

Borthwick will be without an assortment of his top names, with a solid cohort of contribution to the upcoming British & Irish Lions tour to Australia. England captain Maro Itoje has been named to lead Andy Farrell's side 'down under', with a total of 12 England capped players called up for the Lions tour. This has flung the door wide open for international contenders, with the upcoming Summer tour set to provide a proving ground for many an England 'bolter'.

Borthwick will name his squad for the Summer next Tuesday, 20th May, at England's Bagshot base of Pennyhill Park. This past weekend elevated the stock of an assortment of England hopefuls, who will be hoping for another strong Premiership outing over the coming days. It's worth noting that Borthwick will not call up any Northampton Saints or Bath players in his inaugural squad announcement, with the Saints into the Champions Cup Final and with Bath chasing Challenge Cup glory.

Having come so close for an international debut during the 2024 Autumn Nations Series, there is plenty of expectation that the Gabriel Ibitoye will earn his first senior cap this Summer. The electric Bristol Bears wing earned a call-up into the England squad back in November, but Ibitoye's only international honours came in the form of the England A win over Australia A at the Twickenham Stoop.

With a strike rate of 12 tries in 16 matches (in all competitions) this season, Ibitoye has been one of the Premiership's top finishers. The 27-year-old earned the Premiership's Player of the Month award for October, as he sailed through Exeter's defence for an unforgettable hat-trick that secured a West Country derby triumph. It has been some season for Ibitoye, with the former Harlequins and Montpellier man out to elevate up from the England A system, to earn a fully-fledged senior Test cap.

We'll stick with the wings for the time being, with Harlequins high flyer Cadan Murley adamant to make up for lost time in an England jersey. Having knocked on the door for the past three Premiership seasons, Borthwick finally unleashed Murley upon the senior Test stage, with the wing earning his England debut in the opening round of the 2025 Guinness Men's Six Nations. However, Murley picked up an unfortunate foot injury in the Round One clash with Ireland, that curtailed his campaign in gut-wrenching fashion.

Murley made his comeback in the famous Harlequins quarters, following two months on the injury wards. The 25-year-old marked his return with a well-taken try against Sale Sharks, before a stunning outing in his latest venture to the 'Big Stoop'. Harlequins hosted Gloucester at the Allianz Stadium this past weekend, with Murley bagging a hat-trick in a sensational performance against the Cherry and Whites. Borthwick will be looking for a player to step up in Tommy Freeman's Lions absence, with Ibitoye and Murley the front-running Premiership wingers thus far this season.

Gloucester's hot prospect continues to ply his trade in Cherry and White, and impress all onlookers with his stand-out propping performances. The 20-year-old who went toe-to-toe with England and Lions prop Ellis Genge, continues to turn heads in the Premiership and put the league's front row on notice. Afolabi Fasogbon earned an England A run out this past November against Australia A, and will be gunning for his first senior cap for Steve Borthwick's side this Summer.

Fasogbon is a tight-head by nature, having wrestled control of the Cherry and White three jersey throughout the latest Premiership season. Thankfully for the young prop, England's resident tight-head Will Stuart is bound for Australia with the Lions, which opens up a vacancy in the realm that would suit Fasogbon to the tee. The 20-year-old may have some veteran competition, with Leicester Tigers stalwart Dan Cole not yet finished on the Test match stage.

England head coach Steve Borthwick has confirmed that Henry Arundell will be available for selection as soon as Racing 92's 2024/25 Top 14 season concludes, paving the way for the explosive winger’s return to international duty. Arundell burst onto the England scene during the 2022/23 season while contracted to London Irish, scoring seven tries in 10 appearances, including a memorable five-try performance against Chile in the 2023 Rugby World Cup - his penultimate cap before featuring in the tournament’s Bronze Final.

Following the collapse of London Irish, Arundell moved to France to play for Racing 92, which made him ineligible for England selection under current rules. However, with the 22-year-old now set to return to the Premiership by joining Bath for the 2025/26 season, Borthwick expressed his eagerness to see the winger back in an England shirt: “As I understand, as soon as the Racing season finishes then he’s going to be available for selection.”

If there was ever a selfless man who put the success of his team before his own personal pride, it is Northampton Saints centre Fraser Dingwall. When Fin Smith, Henry Pollock, Alex Mitchell and Tommy Freeman all had their names read out for a spot on the Lions tour, Dingwall celebrated jubilantly with his Saints brothers, and had his teammates round for dinner to celebrate their accomplishments. Dingwall did not wallow in missing out on Lions selection, as the centre will be a key figure in England's Summer tour of Argentina and the United States.

'Dingers' recent run with the England team came off the back of Ollie Lawrence's season ending injury, as the Bath man ruptured his Achilles against Italy. Dingwall was flung into action and held down the centre channel with great aplomb, for the final two rounds of England's Six Nations campaign. Dingwall has been in tremendous form in green, black and gold, having played a pivotal role in Northampton's journey to the Champions Cup Final. Whilst Borthwick can't pick the centre until after the Saints have battled Bordeaux-Begles for the ultimate prize in club rugby, Dingwall is expected to join the fray ahead of the incoming trip across the Atlantic.