Five uncapped stars for Eddie Jones to consider

Trying to second guess the next Eddie Jones England squad is no mean feat. This autumn will mark five years at the helm for Eddie and there are always headlines from his announcements.

Whether it’s a leftfield inclusion, a notable omission or a player mooted to be moving positions, expect the unexpected. We’ve had Eddie’s Apprentices, the perennially outcast and the eleventh hour changes of heart before tournaments. Eddie is clearly a man worried by players becoming comfortable in their shirt and he’ll mix it up whenever he can, to keep the players focused. So where do we think Eddie will surprise this time around?

There’s been few clues for who gets the nod as reserve scrum half to Ben Youngs. Ben Spencer? Dan Robson? Neither seem to be tick Eddie’s boxes and he’s reluctantly turned to them and dropped them at will. Neither know where they stand with Eddie and he may opt for one of the younger players at his disposal. Potentially he could include Alex Mitchell at Northampton or Jack Maunder at Exeter, both are exciting players in form for their respective clubs. To me, the classiest player coming through is Harry Randall at Bristol. An incredibly exciting player who would really test incumbent Ben Youngs.

There’s literally no wrong answer for Eddie in who he includes as third Fly Half. Ford & Farrell will feature in the starting 23, but who warrants inclusion alongside them? Eddie could choose any one of Joe Simmonds, Jacob Umaga, Marcus Smith, Manu Vunipola or James Grayson and there’d be little argument from the rugby public. All aged under 24, they represent an embarrassment of riches that surely no England selector has had the luxury of before. If performances in the Premiership are to count for anything though, Joe Simmonds deserves the promotion.

Another player that deserves a call up is Bristol Hooker Harry Thacker. Whilst Jamie George and Luke Cowan-Dickie are clearly head and shoulders above the rest of the field, Tom Dunn & Jack Singleton have seemingly competed to be Eddie’s third choice. Whilst both are competent all round hookers, neither possess match winning ability that Harry has shown since his move from Leicester Tigers. He’s the perfect player to introduce late on in an international as he injects pace and energy on arrival.

The most competitive area of this England side is the back row. For both Stuart Lancaster and now Eddie it’s been an area of quality but not of quantity, but the new influx of talent bodes well for the success of the team. The trio that produced such dominance in the World Cup last year are available and in Underhill, Curry & Vunipola, England have a better balanced back row than they selected in the 6 Nations. I expect Eddie knows that it’s time to dispense with selecting a third lock at 6, this experiment surely isn’t an option given the departure of George Kruis to Japan. If Eddie really wants dynamism in his squad he needs to pick Jack Willis & Alex Dombrandt who for their clubs, Wasps & Harlequins respectively, regularly collect man of the match awards. Both players are powerful in defence, effective at the breakdown but most importantly they are dynamic ball carriers. Alongside Ben Earl and Sam Simmonds, this would give the England squad the competition for places that Eddie so desires.

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