Steve Borthwick wants as many England players as possible involved with Lions
England head coach Steve Borthwick wants 'as many England players as possible' involved with the Lions as he prepares an unfamiliar lineup to face France at Twickenham on Saturday.
There are five uncapped names in an experimental England squad that was announced on Thursday, three of whom are set to start the match, with 14 players currently in Dublin with Andy Farrell's side for Friday's game against Argentina following Jack van Poortvliet's call-up this week.
Amongst those playing from the start in west London will be Gloucester centre Seb Atkinson, selected after an impressive year in what was only a second professional season at Kingsholm for the 23-year-old, during which he ranked top in carries, tackles, and passes amongst centres in the Premiership.
Back in action this weekend 🙌
Head coach Steve Borthwick has named his match day squad to face a France XV this Saturday at @allianz_stad 🌹
Watch live and free on @RugbyPass TV 📺 @O2 | #WearTheRose
— England Rugby (@EnglandRugby) June 19, 2025
With this summer's tour of Argentina and the United States overlapping with the Lions' time in Australia, Borthwick is looking forward to experimenting with his side beyond Saturday's non-cap international.
'We've spoken very publicly, we want as many England players in that Lions squad as possible,' he said. 'JVP is over there at the minute with them. There might be situations where other England players join that squad and we'll be delighted for our players to do that.
'It creates opportunities for others in the England squad. What I'm seeing so far this week is players grabbing that opportunity.
'Seb Atkinson, starting at 12 this week, the way he has embraced training, the way he's jumped into it. He's smashed every record we have on GPS in terms of his running.
'We have a group of players – Sladey (Henry Slade), Tommy Freeman, Freddie Steward – Seb has come in and put himself right in that mix or even just above that. When that happens, you're raising the standard of everybody.'
Also set to start on Saturday is Bath flanker Guy Pepper fresh from a starring role in Saturday's Premiership final win over Leicester.
The 22-year-old, who was awarded man of the match as Bath ended a 29-year wait for the title, was called up to train with the team during the 2024 Six Nations having made an impression on Borthwick during his time at Newcastle.
'You've seen enormous growth in Guy,' he said. 'The first time I met Guy was about 18 months ago at a hotel in Newcastle airport. I had a coffee with Guy and watched his game the next day.
'He hurt his hip and had to leave the field after about 30 minutes but in that 30 minutes he played so well. I thought then this is a player that's got a future in the England team.
'Since then his game has grown and grown. You saw his performance Saturday in the Premiership final, he's been tremendous. I'm looking forward to seeing him at this level.'
Borthwick pointed to the emergence of Tom Curry for England in 2017 when the Lions were touring as reason why Saturday's non-cap match should be respected.
'The way change happens is, when opportunity comes along, somebody grabs it,' said Borthwick. 'The players understand that.
'The number of players in 2017 who emerged on that tour that summer who played such significant roles in a team that went to the World Cup final a few years later in 2019, the likes of Sam Underhill, Tom Curry, Mark Wilson emerged on that tour.
'That's the opportunity that presents itself this summer.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Record
2 hours ago
- Daily Record
The haunting Rangers failure Steven Davis still lives with as former skipper lifts lid on 'huge frustration'
Davis admits it still lives with him that Rangers failed to kick on after sealing 55 Steven Davis admits he's still haunted by Rangers ' failure turn 55 into 56. The retired Ibrox legend was a key man when Steven Gerrard 's squad last lifted Premiership silver back in 2021. But they let that crown slip the following season after Gerrard made a mid-season move to Aston Villa, with his replacement Gio van Bronckhorst unable to mount a repeat of the previous season's title triumph. It has proved to be a pivotal sliding doors moment. Instead of embarking on their own era of glory, Gers have had to sit and watch their Parkhead foes rack up four straight league wins in a row. 'It's a huge frustration to be honest,' admitted former skipper Davis. 'I believe that with the quality we had in that time, we should have had a lot more success than what we did together. "It's easy to sit here and say that but it's hard to pinpoint the reasons why we didn't go on and achieve more than what we did, because we did really feel that the quality was there within the team. 'Ultimately over the course of the season, usually the best team wins and we didn't do enough in that year to do it.' Asked if he felt Rangers would be in a far stronger position now had they backed up their 2021 victory, the Northern Irishman replied: 'One hundred percent. That's always the ambition, once you get your hands on that first trophy, you want to do it on a regular basis. "We know it's not easy to have consistent success and we fell short really in the end. It's still a huge frustration for all of us involved, me certainly.' It's that failure to deliver regular silverware which means captain James Tavernier continues to divide the Ibrox fanbase. The full-back has clocked up 10 years in Glasgow but the club have yet to announce if he will be honoured for a decade of service. Davis, though, is adamant there would be no-one more deserving of a testimonial than Tavernier. He said: 'I think 10 years service at a club like Rangers is an unbelievable achievement. 'You know when you sign there that you're going to get criticism at some point during your career. He's had that but he's got broad enough shoulders, and for me, he's dealt with it really well. 'And I think also at Rangers, they're always looking for better players to replace you. But ultimately, he's managed to keep his place over the course of the time that he's been there, 'So everybody who has been manager has always seen the qualities when deciding to keep playing him and to keep him as captain as well. 'So I think if you have that level of service at a club, then you deserve everything you get.' Russell Martin is rumoured to be eyeing up Max Aarons as a potential replacement for Tavernier. But Davis believes his old-team still has plenty to offer. Asked if he could understand the flak directed at Tav, he replied: 'That's the Glasgow fishbowl, isn't it? 'When you're captain of the club and the club hasn't won as many trophies as they would like in recent times, that pressure's going to come, the stress is going to come. For me, sometimes it's over the top. 'I think he's been a fabulous player for the club. 'His availability is unquestionable, the number of goals and assists that he's had is incredible really, for a full-back or any position to be honest. I think he's been a really good servant for the football club. 'Sometimes that is overlooked. I understand that, you're always going to get critics out there. But I do feel that at times it's been a little bit over the mark with Tav. 'You can't be false to who you are as a person. You get the role because of the qualities that you bring, and you try to bring those qualities to the team. 'There's no two people who are the same and everybody will lead in different ways as well. 'It's just about the consistency of your actions, really. For me, that's how I tried to act as a player, I tried to lead by example. "Obviously on the basis of that, I was chosen in different captaincy roles at various clubs and also for my country as well. 'It's the same in management too, which I'm finding out now in my new coaching role. There are many different managers out there but you can't copycat anybody, you just have to be your own person. 'And I think people then respond to that. ' Davis isn't ready to write off Tavernier - but he admits it might be time for Ross McCausland to consider an Ibrox exit if he can't win over new boss Martin. He gave his fellow countryman his big break when he introduced him to the Gers line-up during his brief stint as caretaker gaffer in 2023. McCausland got off to a flying start - but he's featured less and less lately after a nightmare display towards the end of the season saw him sent off at Pittodrie. 'I think for you, development is always important to play games, that's where you learn,' said Davis. 'It's difficult to just train and try to progress, so it's obviously going to be another big summer for Ross in terms of the decisions that he makes. 'I'm sure different things are floating around his head, but ultimately there's a new manager coming in, he'll be open to seeing what players can bring to the team and give them an opportunity to do that and really impress in pre-season. 'Maybe then things can go from there. 'Hopefully that's the case for Ross. I think he's got qualities in there, he has had a difficult season and he's probably the first to admit that himself. 'But he'll ultimately want to stay at Rangers and have a career there, so I think the onus is on him to really go and stamp his authority on pre-season and see where that takes him. 'As a manager you have to be open-minded and I think there's always players that will surprise you. I've seen Russell talking about that himself. 'I think that when you go in there, you have a picture of maybe the qualities that players have, but until you work with them on a daily basis then you don't really get the full picture. 'Obviously Russell will be bringing in his own people to try to help the team as well but there's no reason why players like Ross who have kind been on the periphery this season can't show that they have qualities that they can bring to the team.' Davis was speaking as he helped promote 10 Years On - a celebratory event taking place at Belfast's Ulster Hall on May 2, 2026, marking next year's anniversary of Northern Ireland's Euro 2016 campaign. For tickets go to
Belfast Telegraph
4 hours ago
- Belfast Telegraph
Rory Knox states why captaining Coleraine to Senior Cup glory would taste even sweeter than title joy
Coleraine have been the surprise package of the 2025 North West season to date, with the Bannsiders sitting proudly at the summit of the Premiership and in the Semi-Final of the Senior Cup. It's quite a transformation from 2024 when they were involved in a relegation dogfight, and much of the credit must go to their new captain, all-rounder Rory Knox.
North Wales Chronicle
5 hours ago
- North Wales Chronicle
Steve Borthwick wants as many England players as possible involved with Lions
There are five uncapped names in an experimental England squad that was announced on Thursday, three of whom are set to start the match, with 14 players currently in Dublin with Andy Farrell's side for Friday's game against Argentina following Jack van Poortvliet's call-up this week. Amongst those playing from the start in west London will be Gloucester centre Seb Atkinson, selected after an impressive year in what was only a second professional season at Kingsholm for the 23-year-old, during which he ranked top in carries, tackles, and passes amongst centres in the Premiership. Back in action this weekend 🙌 Head coach Steve Borthwick has named his match day squad to face a France XV this Saturday at @allianz_stad 🌹 Watch live and free on @RugbyPass TV 📺@O2 | #WearTheRose — England Rugby (@EnglandRugby) June 19, 2025 With this summer's tour of Argentina and the United States overlapping with the Lions' time in Australia, Borthwick is looking forward to experimenting with his side beyond Saturday's non-cap international. 'We've spoken very publicly, we want as many England players in that Lions squad as possible,' he said. 'JVP is over there at the minute with them. There might be situations where other England players join that squad and we'll be delighted for our players to do that. 'It creates opportunities for others in the England squad. What I'm seeing so far this week is players grabbing that opportunity. 'Seb Atkinson, starting at 12 this week, the way he has embraced training, the way he's jumped into it. He's smashed every record we have on GPS in terms of his running. 'We have a group of players – Sladey (Henry Slade), Tommy Freeman, Freddie Steward – Seb has come in and put himself right in that mix or even just above that. When that happens, you're raising the standard of everybody.' Also set to start on Saturday is Bath flanker Guy Pepper fresh from a starring role in Saturday's Premiership final win over Leicester. The 22-year-old, who was awarded man of the match as Bath ended a 29-year wait for the title, was called up to train with the team during the 2024 Six Nations having made an impression on Borthwick during his time at Newcastle. 'You've seen enormous growth in Guy,' he said. 'The first time I met Guy was about 18 months ago at a hotel in Newcastle airport. I had a coffee with Guy and watched his game the next day. 'He hurt his hip and had to leave the field after about 30 minutes but in that 30 minutes he played so well. I thought then this is a player that's got a future in the England team. 'Since then his game has grown and grown. You saw his performance Saturday in the Premiership final, he's been tremendous. I'm looking forward to seeing him at this level.' Borthwick pointed to the emergence of Tom Curry for England in 2017 when the Lions were touring as reason why Saturday's non-cap match should be respected. 'The way change happens is, when opportunity comes along, somebody grabs it,' said Borthwick. 'The players understand that. 'The number of players in 2017 who emerged on that tour that summer who played such significant roles in a team that went to the World Cup final a few years later in 2019, the likes of Sam Underhill, Tom Curry, Mark Wilson emerged on that tour. 'That's the opportunity that presents itself this summer.'
