Louis Deacon has almost completely recast his squad to face Canada second time round.
It means he is intent on seeing as many of his likely 30 choices for his WXV squad as possible before they fly out.
The squad:
15 Ellie Kildunne, 14 Jess Breach 13 Megan Jones 12 Amber Reed 11 Claudia Macdonald 10 Holly Aitchison 9 Mo Hunt 1 Hannah Botterman 2 Amy Cokayne 3 Maud Muir 4 Zoe Aldcroft 5 Sarah Beckett 6 Morwenna Talling 7 Maisy Allen 8 Marlie Packer (captain)
Bench:
16 Connie Powell, 17 Mackenzie Carson, 18 Sarah Bern, 19 Cath O’Donnell, 20 Rosie Galligan, 21 Lucy Packer, 22 *Sophie Bridger, 23 Abby Dow
*uncapped
Looking first at the spine of the team (Nos 2, 8, 9, 10, 15) – he has retained only Kildunne and Aitchison in place. Once more the No 8 position sees a different face, the captain herself. By the time WXV comes around – and it’s less than a fortnight away! – we must hope that the selectors are able to steady the ship and establish a permanent owner of that vital shirt.
One downside of making nine changes is the pressure it puts on defensive security. Four tries conceded at Exeter was roughly four too many. Major and minor shifts in position (for example the captain from 7 to 8) can’t help tighten a leaky defence.
In the interim management team Sarah Hunter is responsible for defensive systems. It will be interesting to see how far she has been able to analyse and repair weaknesses shown there.
For the second time running one new cap is awarded. Sophie Bridger made her mark last season as a highly promising centre with the team of the year, Gloucester-Hartpury. Following an all too familiar trend, she has upped sticks to join the club that used to be perennial league winners, Saracens.
Players who disappear from view include the two centres, Helena Rowland and Tatyana Heard and Lark Atkin-Davies. But while England’s newest 50-capper sits out, the new draft sees as many as five 50-cappers included, a considerable increase on last time.
It remains to be seen who, if any, of England’s missing persons will be restored to match fitness between now and 20 October. They include some worryingly important names, for example Alex Matthews, Emily Scarratt, Poppy Cleall and Sadia Kabeya.
Details:
30 September, StoneX Stadium, NW4, KO 15.00
Coverage on England Rugby Facebook and YouTube pages (start 14.40, BST)
