England head coach Eddie Jones has revealed his four man shortlist to replace Owen Farrell to become England's next number 10.
All England Rugby content on RUCK is powered by CRX Compression.
On his four picks, Jones commented: "They are all possibly going to have the opportunity to step up to the plate,
"It is the toughest position in world rugby. You have so much pressure, so little time and space, a lot of decisions to make so it’s a fantastic opportunity for one of the young guys to step up.”
Eddie Jones added: “We are really keen to bring some younger guys through. It is the right time for us in terms of our World Cup planning.”
EDDIE JONES' FOUR FLY-HALVES TO WATCH:
Marcus Smith
- Age: 22
- Club: Harlequins
Smith's rapid rise shows no signs of slowing down – it took barely a year for him to go from captaining Brighton College in an unbeaten season to involvement in the senior England squad.
The Harlequins star, who balances flair with good game management, looks like the obvious choice to be Eddie Jones next number 10.
DID YOU KNOW? Marcus became the second-youngest Premiership debutant in history, behind George Ford, when making his Harlequins bow against London Irish aged 18 years and 200 days in September 2017
Charlie Atkinson
- Age: 19
- Club: Wasps
Atkinson has impressed in the Wasps first-team recently, and has been part of England's shadow squad for the 2021 Six Nations. Rugby runs in the family for this talented number 10 with Dad Ian playing for Tynedale RFC, Northumberland and also having England U18 trials.
DID YOU KNOW? Atkinson began his rugby journey at Oxford RFC, aged five.
Fin Smith
- Age: 18
- Club: Worcester Warriors
Smith became the second-youngest player to play for Warriors in the Gallagher Premiership when he made his debut as a replacement against Gloucester Rugby at Kingsholm in February.
At 18 years and 292 days, Smith became only the second 18-year-old to play for Warriors in the top flight when he played against Wasps in April 2008.
DID YOU KNOW? Following Smith’s debut, England centre Ollie Lawrence drops to third in the list of Warriors’ youngest Premiership players.
Joe Simmonds
- Age: 24
- Club: Exeter Chiefs
The Aussie has come under fire for consistently ignoring Simmonds, who captained Exeter to a Premiership and European Cup double last season. Name-checking him, his time now may finally come this summer.
Like his older brother Sam, Simmonds has come through the Chiefs academy system at Ivybridge Community College - and he's previously represented England at age group level, including the Under-20s in the Six Nations Championship.
DID YOU KNOW? Simmonds was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2021 New Year Honours for services to rugby union football
