Borthwick to lead England
Tue, 13 May 2008 11:14
New England skipper Steve Borthwick
England Team Manager Martin Johnson has made his first official decision as manager when he named Steve Borthwick as captain of England for their two-test tour to New Zealand in June.
The Bath lock will lead a 32-man squad that was announced on Tuesday by England's Elite Rugby Director Rob Andrew and England Team Manager Martin Johnson.
There are six uncapped players in the squad to take on New Zealand in two tests on June 14 and June 21.
In the forwards Dylan Hartley, Jason Hobson, Nick Kennedy and David Paice all make their first appearances in an England squad, whilst the backline sees Danny Care and Topsy Ojo included for the first time.
Meanwhile London Irish coach Toby Booth was ecstatic at the inclusion of six Exiles players in the Senior and Saxons squads.
Nick Kennedy, Topsy Ojo, David Paice and Peter Richards are included in the England Senior squad for the tour to New Zealand, whilst Steffon Armitage and Paul Hodgson are in the England Saxons squad for the Churchill Cup tournament in Canada and the United States.
"I'm pleased on two levels," said Booth.
"First of all for the club as the selection of so many players reflects our ambition and is fantastic recognition of the efforts of our squad over the season.
"Second, on a personal level I've worked with four of the players since they joined our Academy and it has been very rewarding to take them through to the stage where they are on the verge of winning international caps.
"We believe that players like James Buckland, Declan Danaher, James Hudson and Kieran Roche, who have previously achieved representative honours, will be encouraged by the selection of their colleagues and will compete even harder to secure places in future squads," added Booth.
Also announced was the England Saxons squad to travel to the USA and Canada for the 2008 Barclays Churchill Cup.
The side will be led by Leicester Tigers hooker George Chuter who is one of nine capped players in the 28-strong squad.
England squad to tour New Zealand:
Forwards: Steve Bothwick (Bath Rugby, captain), Tom Croft (Leicester Tigers), Nick Easter (Harlequins, Dylan Hartley (Northampton Saints), James Haskell (London Wasps), Jason Hobson (Bristol Rugby), Ben Kay (Leicester Tigers), Nick Kennedy (London Irish), Michael Lipman (Bath Rugby), Lee Mears (Bath Rugby), Luke Narraway (Gloucester Rugby), David Paice (London Irish), Tom Palmer (London Wasps), Tim Payne (London Wasps), Tom Rees (London Wasps), Andrew Sheridan (Sale Sharks), Matt Stevens (Bath Rugby), Joe Worsley (London Wasps).
Backs: Olly Barkley (Bath Rugby), Mike Brown (Harlequins), Danny Care (Harlequins), Danny Cipriani (London Wasps), Toby Flood (Newcastle Falcons), Charlie Hodgson (Sale Sharks), Jamie Noon (Newcastle Falcons), Topsy Ojo (London Irish), Pete Richards (London Irish), Paul Sackey (London Wasps), David Strettle (Harlequins), Mathew Tait (Newcastle Falcons), Mike Tindall (Gloucester Rugby), Richard Wigglesworth (Sale Sharks)
England Saxons Barclays Churchill Cup squad:
Forwards: Steffon Armitage (London Irish), Richard Blaze (Leicester Tigers), Alex Brown (Gloucester Rugby), George Chuter (Leicester Tigers), Alex Clarke (Bristol Rugby), Jordan Crane (Leicester Tigers), Jack Forster (Gloucester Rugby), Tom Guest (Harlequins), Chris Jones (Sale Sharks), Nick Lloyd (Saracens), Chris Robshaw (Harlequins), Will Skinner (Harlequins, captain), George Skivington (London Wasps), Andy Titterrell (Gloucester Rugby), Rob Webber (London Wasps), Dave Wilson (Newcastle Falcons).
Backs: Nick Abendanon (Bath Rugby,), Anthony Allen (Gloucester Rugby), Matt Banahan (Bath Rugby), Lee Dickson (Newcastle Falcons), Ben Foden (Sale Sharks), Paul Hodgson (London Irish), Adrian Jarvis (Harlequins), Ryan Lamb (Gloucester Rugby), Ugo Monye (Harlequins), Ollie Smith (Leicester Tigers), Tom Varndell (Leicester Tigers), Dominic Waldouck (London Wasps).
