England’s hopes of Calcutta Cup glory have taken a hit as scrum-half Alex Mitchell faces a setback, ruled out of the crucial clash against Scotland due to a knee issue.
The Rugby Football Union disclosed Mitchell’s absence, citing a need for additional assessment before determining his comeback timeline.
Stepping into the fray is Harry Randall, summoned to Steve Borthwick’s 36-man training roster as Mitchell’s stand-in.
Meanwhile, the battle for the number nine spot intensifies, with Danny Care and Ben Spencer vying for selection as England’s pivot in the upcoming Murrayfield showdown.
England squad (vs Scotland, Saturday)
Forwards (20):
Ollie Chessum (Leicester Tigers)
Dan Cole (Leicester Tigers)
Alex Coles (Northampton Saints)
Luke Cowan-Dickie (Sale Sharks)
Chandler Cunningham-South (Harlequins)
Ben Curry (Sale Sharks)
Theo Dan (Saracens)
Alex Dombrandt (Harlequins)
Ben Earl (Saracens)
Charlie Ewels (Bath Rugby)
Ellis Genge (Bristol Bears)
Jamie George (Saracens)
Joe Heyes (Leicester Tigers)
Maro Itoje (Saracens)
Joe Marler (Harlequins)
George Martin (Leicester Tigers)
Beno Obano (Bath Rugby)
Ethan Roots (Exeter Chiefs)
Will Stuart (Bath Rugby)
Sam Underhill (Bath Rugby)
Backs (16):
Danny Care (Harlequins)
Elliot Daly (Saracens)
Fraser Dingwall (Northampton Saints)
Immanuel Feyi-Waboso (Exeter Chiefs)
George Ford (Sale Sharks)
Tommy Freeman (Northampton Saints)
George Furbank (Northampton Saints)
Ollie Lawrence (Bath Rugby)
Max Ojomoh (Bath Rugby)
Harry Randall (Bristol Bears)
Tom Roebuck (Sale Sharks)
Henry Slade (Exeter Chiefs)
Fin Smith (Northampton Saints)
Ben Spencer (Bath Rugby)
Freddie Steward (Leicester Tigers)
Manu Tuilagi (Sale Sharks)
- Marcus Smith (Harlequins) will join the squad to continue his rehabilitation from injury.
The 40 greatest England players of all time have been ranked in controversial list
Scroll down to discover the 40 greatest rugby players of all time, as chosen by fans.
40 best English rugby players of all-time
#40. Mike Teague
#39. Wade Dooley
#38. Manu Tuilagi
#37. Dylan Hartley
#36. Trevor Woodman
#35. Kyran Bracken
#34. Billy Vunipola
#33. Joe Marler
#32. Steve Thompson
#31. Will Carling