Chiefs quartet in England side

By Mark Stevens
4/2/21

Four Exeter Chiefs players have been named in Eddie Jones' England squad for Saturday's Guinness Six Nations Championship opener against Scotland at Twickenham (4:45pm).

Jonny Hill and Henry Slade will both start the game, while club-mates Luke Cowan-Dickie and Harry Williams have been named on the bench for the Calcutta Cup showdown.

The game marks the 150-year anniversary of the fixture, after the first-ever international rugby Test match was played between the two nations at Raeburn Place, Edinburgh in 1871.

Owen Farrell, who will captain England throughout the championship, is at fly=half and the team’s most experienced player Ben Youngs is set to make his 105th cap, at scrum-half.

Slade will line-up in the centre alongside Worcester's Ollie Lawrence, while Hill is set to win his 5th Test cap packing down alongside the experienced Maro Itoje (Saracens) in the England engine room.

Jones said: “We’re really looking forward to this game and getting the Guinness Six Nations back underway. It’s even more special to be taking part in a 150th anniversary game, it will be a good occasion.

“It was difficult to pick the 23 players. We’ve had a really good week of training, it’s been very competitive but I’ve gone with what I feel is the strongest 23 for this week.

“The Six Nations is a short tournament, it’s a real sprint so we’ll need to be on the front foot straight away. We know Scotland will be raring to go – but so will we.”

England v Scotland is live on ITV 1 and BBC Radio 5 Live.

ENGLAND SIDE TO FACE SCOTLAND

15. Elliot Daly (Saracens, 47 caps)
14. Anthony Watson (Bath Rugby, 46 caps)
13. Henry Slade (Exeter Chiefs, 34 caps)
12. Ollie Lawrence (Worcester Warriors, 3 caps)
11. Jonny May (Gloucester Rugby, 61 caps)
10. Owen Farrell (C) (Saracens, 88 caps)
9. Ben Youngs (Leicester Tigers, 104 caps)
1. Ellis Genge (Leicester Tigers, 23 caps)
2. Jamie George (Saracens, 54 caps)
3. Will Stuart (Bath Rugby, 8 caps)
4. Maro Itoje (Saracens, 43 caps)
5. Jonny Hill (Exeter Chiefs, 4 caps)
6. Mark Wilson (Newcastle Falcons, 19 caps)
7. Tom Curry (Sale Sharks, 28 caps)
8. Billy Vunipola (Saracens, 56 caps)

16. Luke Cowan-Dickie (Exeter Chiefs, 26 caps)
17. Beno Obano (Bath Rugby, uncapped)
18. Harry Williams (Exeter Chiefs, 18 caps)
19. Courtney Lawes (Northampton Saints, 85 caps)
20. Ben Earl (Bristol Bears, 8 caps)
21. Dan Robson (Wasps, 7 caps)
22. George Ford (Leicester Tigers, 72 caps)
23. Max Malins (Bristol Bears, 3 caps)