Dylan Hartley the latest doubt as injury-hit England prepare to face France
England have been hit by multiple injury problems before their Six Nations match against France on Saturday with doubts over Dylan Hartley’s fitness chief among them. The captain has a tight calf and will be continually assessed before Eddie Jones names his team on Thursday but his absence would be a considerable blow for England, with Sam Underhill and Jack Nowell already ruled out.
Underhill and Nowell have been hit by toe and ankle injuries respectively while Harry Williams (neck) is also a doubt. Underhill’s absence is keenly felt, as the 21-year-old was tipped to come into the starting XV and add his breakdown nous to the back row, but Hartley’s injury will be of particular concern with Jones steadfastly backing his under-fire captain as England seek to bounce back from their defeat against Scotland, only their second in 26 Tests.
His injury is serious enough that Luke Cowan-Dickie has been called up from Exeter, with Jamie George standing by to make his second England start in 24 appearances if Hartley is ruled out. He did not take part in training on Tuesday after reporting tightness in his calf on Monday, meaning Jones will name his team to face France before Hartley has the opportunity to train alongside the rest of the squad again.
“Dylan has muscle tightness in his leg and that has meant that Luke Cowan-Dickie was called up to the squad [on Monday] and trained fully [on Tuesday] morning as cover,” the England forwards coach, Steve Borthwick, said. “We have the two hookers and we need the third hooker as cover. Dylan will be monitored on a daily basis and we’ll see how that progresses. We’ll continue to monitor him, we’ve got various mechanisms with which to do it and the medical staff advise on a daily basis.”
Underhill and Nowell have been hit by toe and ankle injuries respectively while Harry Williams (neck) is also a doubt. Underhill’s absence is keenly felt, as the 21-year-old was tipped to come into the starting XV and add his breakdown nous to the back row, but Hartley’s injury will be of particular concern with Jones steadfastly backing his under-fire captain as England seek to bounce back from their defeat against Scotland, only their second in 26 Tests.
His injury is serious enough that Luke Cowan-Dickie has been called up from Exeter, with Jamie George standing by to make his second England start in 24 appearances if Hartley is ruled out. He did not take part in training on Tuesday after reporting tightness in his calf on Monday, meaning Jones will name his team to face France before Hartley has the opportunity to train alongside the rest of the squad again.
“Dylan has muscle tightness in his leg and that has meant that Luke Cowan-Dickie was called up to the squad [on Monday] and trained fully [on Tuesday] morning as cover,” the England forwards coach, Steve Borthwick, said. “We have the two hookers and we need the third hooker as cover. Dylan will be monitored on a daily basis and we’ll see how that progresses. We’ll continue to monitor him, we’ve got various mechanisms with which to do it and the medical staff advise on a daily basis.”
Source:
theguardian
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