England coach Lancaster to name RWC squad on Thursday

Duncan Bech 11:49 25/08/2015
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  • Too little, too late? Danny Cipriani faces a fight to make the final 31.

    England will name the 31 players who will carry home at the World Cup on Thursday, the Rugby Football Union confirmed.

    Head coach Stuart Lancaster will unveil his squad at a 13:45 (16:45, UAE time) press conference at the team’s Surrey training base, cutting eight from the group of 39 who have been involved in the two warm-up games against France.

    A 25-20 defeat in Paris on Saturday has muddled the selection picture after utility back Danny Cipriani, number eight Nick Easter and lock Dave Attwood delivered influential cameos off the bench.

    All three needed strong performances to challenge England’s thinking and reacted by playing important roles in the late fightback that secured scoreboard respectability in an otherwise dire performance.

    Lancaster, who said at the Stade de France he is unsure how many places are still open, has planned face to face meetings with those players who will be jettisoned.

    Cipriani is behind Mike Brown and Alex Goode in the full-back hierarchy and George Ford and Owen Farrell at fly-half, leaving Lancaster with the conundrum of how to shoehorn him into his squad.

    The 27-year-old Sale playmaker, who showed his pace by touching down in Paris and brought energy to the team, is likely to be omitted.

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    England’s World Cup winning scrum-half Matt Dawson was impressed by Cipriani but insists the criteria for selection must extend beyond choosing a player because he can rescue a lost cause.

    “Most of the bench played well – Nick Easter, Jamie George, Danny Care and Cipriani. There lots of headaches and Cipriani is one of those headaches,” Dawson said.

    “But you can’t just pick a couple of players in case you’re 15 points down and you needed someone to come and win a game.

    “You have to think about who will come on in the second minute if your fly-half is injured. That’s why you need game management players on the bench as well.”

    Rugby league convert Sam Burgess is set to be included among the 31 after a solid performance on his debut against France at Twickenham 10 days ago, but Dawson is more convinced by Henry Slade, who is likely to miss out.

    “Sam’s inclusion will be based on more than what he did at Twickenham. His off-field influence is well received by the management,” Dawson said.

    “Henry Slade played out of his skin and more importantly looked like he could do that week in, week out. I can understand why they’d take Sam Burgess but he wouldn’t be in my 31, nor in Clive Woodward’s.”

    It’s a view shared by legendary Ireland centre Brian O’Driscoll, who wrote on his website: “Burgess has proper defensive X Factor, of that there’s no doubt. “When his team has the ball though, I just don’t think he’s quite up to speed at international level just yet.”

    England were dire as they slumped to defeat in Paris and the visit of Ireland to Twickenham on September 5 is a match they dare not lose, with the World Cup opener against Fiji two weeks later.

    “The reasons why Saturday night happened can be easily rectified,” Dawson said.

    “I’ve not seen anything that makes me think we have no chance. England at home will be a very tough team to beat. And if they get on a roll, they could go far in the tournament.”

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