England’s coach, Steve Borthwick, has named a 36-man squad for the summer tour of Argentina that includes 10 players who have not yet played for the national team. He aims to strengthen the team and create new chances with 13 players away on duty with the British and Irish Lions.
The new players are Charlie Atkinson, Seb Atkinson, and Arthur Clark from Gloucester; Will Muir, Max Ojomoh, and Guy Pepper from Bath; Oscar Beard and Luke Northmore from Harlequins; Joe Carpenter from Sale; and Emmanuel Iyogun from Northampton. Some of these players participated in a non-cap match against a France XV last Saturday.
Jamie George and George Ford, who has played 99 times for England, will co-captain the squad as they prepare to face Argentina in Buenos Aires on July 5 and San Juan on July 12. They will also compete against the United States in Washington, D.C. on July 19.
During England’s tour of Argentina in 2017, Tom Curry and Sam Underhill made their mark, and two years later, they were important parts of the team that reached the World Cup final along with prop Ellis Genge
“The three-match series is a big challenge and a great chance for this team to keep growing,” Borthwick said in a statement.
“For many of the younger players, this will be their first time traveling abroad with England. Being on the road together helps build strong team connections and gives new players a valuable opportunity to fit into our group.
“This is an exciting test for us, and we can’t wait to see how we keep developing as a team.”
England squad to tour Argentina and United States:
Forwards: Fin Baxter (Harlequins), Arthur Clark (Gloucester Rugby), Alex Coles (Northampton Saints), Chandler Cunningham-South (Harlequins), Ben Curry (Sale Sharks), Theo Dan (Saracens), Trevor Davison (Northampton Saints), Alex Dombrandt (Harlequins), Charlie Ewels (Bath Rugby), Jamie George (Saracens) – co-captain, Joe Heyes (Leicester Tigers), Ted Hill (Bath Rugby), Nick Isiekwe (Saracens), Emmanuel Iyogun (Northampton Saints), Curtis Langdon (Northampton Saints), Asher Opoku-Fordjour (Sale Sharks), Guy Pepper (Bath Rugby), Bevan Rodd (Sale Sharks), Sam Underhill (Bath Rugby), Tom Willis (Saracens).
Backs: Charlie Atkinson (Gloucester Rugby), Seb Atkinson (Gloucester Rugby), Oscar Beard (Harlequins), Joe Carpenter (Sale Sharks), Immanuel Feyi-Waboso (Exeter Chiefs), George Ford (Sale Sharks) – co-captain, Will Muir (Bath Rugby), Cadan Murley (Harlequins), Luke Northmore (Harlequins), Max Ojomoh (Bath Rugby), Harry Randall (Bristol Bears), Tom Roebuck (Sale Sharks), Henry Slade (Exeter Chiefs), Ben Spencer (Bath Rugby), Freddie Steward (Leicester Tigers), Jack van Poortvliet (Leicester Tigers).
