A trio of Sharks will feature for England on Saturday after Jonny Hill, Bevan Rodd and George Ford were named in the matchday 23 to face Wales at the Principality Stadium (KO 5.30pm).
All three Sharks are named on the replacements bench for the first game of the Summer Nations Series ahead of Rugby World Cup 2023 in France which starts in September.
Loosehead prop Ellis Genge (Bristol Bears) will captain England in the 140th meeting between the two nations with hooker Jamie Blamire (Newcastle Falcons) joining tighthead prop Will Stuart (Bath Rugby) to complete the front row.
Elsewhere, David Ribbans (Toulon) partners George Martin (Leicester Tigers) in the second row, with the uncapped Tom Pearson (Northampton Saints) packing down on the openside flank, linking up with Saints teammate Lewis Ludlam who starts on the blindside. Alex Dombrandt (Harlequins) rounds off the pack at No.8.
Harlequins duo Danny Care and Marcus Smith feature in the half-back berths, with Guy Porter (Leicester Tigers) partnering Joe Marchant (Stade Francais) in midfield. Joe Cokanasiga (Bath Rugby) lines up on the left wing, opposite Max Malins (Bristol Bears) on the right, and Freddie Steward (Leicester Tigers) is at fullback.
Amongst the replacements, Saracens teammates Theo Dan and Tom Willis will win their first England caps should they take the field, while Rodd, Kyle Sinckler (Bristol Bears), Hill, Jack van Poortvliet (Leicester Tigers), Ford and Henry Slade (Exeter Chiefs) will all be hoping to make an impact off the bench.
“England versus Wales in Cardiff is always an exciting and keenly contested fixture,” said Borthwick. “I am sure this Saturday will be no different as a tremendous first Test match of the Summer Nations Series. “We have been impressed with how the whole squad has applied itself both on and off the field over this training camp. We are now looking forward to returning to Test match rugby as we continue our preparations for the Rugby World Cup in France.”
Saturday’s clash against Wales is England’s first of four Summer Nations Series fixtures which will be shown live and exclusively on Amazon Prime Video.
WALES v ENGLAND
Saturday 5 August 2023
Principality Stadium, Cardiff
Kick-off: 5.30pm
15. Freddie Steward (Leicester Tigers, 22 caps) 14. Max Malins (Bristol Bears, 18 caps) 13. Joe Marchant (Stade Francais, 15 caps) 12. Guy Porter (Leicester Tigers, 4 caps) 11. Joe Cokanasiga (Bath Rugby, 14 caps) 10. Marcus Smith (Harlequins, 21 caps) 9. Danny Care (Harlequins, 87 caps) 1. Ellis Genge © (Bristol Bears, 48 caps) 2. Jamie Blamire (Newcastle Falcons, 6 caps) 3. Will Stuart (Bath Rugby, 25 caps) 4. David Ribbans (Toulon, 5 caps) 5. George Martin (Leicester Tigers, 1 cap) 6. Lewis Ludlam (Northampton Saints, 19 caps) 7. Tom Pearson (Northampton Saints, uncapped) 8. Alex Dombrandt (Harlequins, 14 caps)
Replacements: 16. Theo Dan (Saracens, uncapped) 17. Bevan Rodd (Sale Sharks, 2 caps) 18. Kyle Sinckler (Bristol Bears, 61 caps) 19. Jonny Hill (Sale Sharks, 19 caps) 20. Tom Willis (Saracens, uncapped) 21. Jack van Poortvliet (Leicester Tigers, 12 caps) 22. George Ford (Sale Sharks, 81 caps) 23. Henry Slade (Exeter Chiefs, 56 caps)
