Roots to captain England A for second time

Exeter Chiefs back-rower Ethan Roots will captain the England A side against an Ireland XV at Thomond Park on Friday evening.

Roots previously captained the side against an All Blacks XV at The Rec in November 2025 and has again been selected for the role by head coach Mark Mapletoft for this latest fixture.

The England team will travel to Limerick later this week for the Friday evening game which kicks off at 19:15 live on Premier Sports.

Roots in joined in the squad's player leadership group by fellow more experienced England internationals Harry Randall and Alex Dombrandt.

Mapletoft said: "We have high expectations for this group. Every player has the talent to perform at their best and we're looking forward to the challenge Friday. The mix of experience and emerging skill in this squad makes it a genuinely exciting team to work with. They will gel quickly, push each other, and learn from one another as we progress, which is exactly what we want from an England A side."

England Men’s A matchday squad to face Ireland XV

15 Joe Carpenter (Sale Sharks, West Park Leeds RUFC, 1 cap)
14 Cadan Murley (Harlequins, Salisbury RFC, 3 caps)
13 Luke Northmore (Harlequins, Tavistock RFC, 2 caps)
12 Orlando Bailey (Leicester Tigers, Dorchester RFC, uncapped)
11 Ollie Hassell-Collins (Leicester Tigers, Newbury RFC, 2 caps)
10 Billy Searle (Leicester Tigers, Oakhampton RFC, uncapped)
9 Harry Randall (Bristol Bears, Tycroes RFC, 14 caps)

1 Tarek Haffar (Leicester Tigers, Grasshoppers RFC, uncapped)
2 Jamie Blamire (Leicester Tigers, Workington RFC, 7 caps)
3 George Kloska (Bristol Bears, St. Brendan’s RFC, uncapped)
4 Ben Bamber (Sale Sharks, Langworthy Reds ARLFC, uncapped)
5 Joe Batley (Bristol Bears, Gosport and Fareham RFC, uncapped)
6 Ethan Roots (C) (Exeter Chiefs, East Coast Bays RFC, 4 caps)
7 Jack Kenningham (Harlequins, Richmond RFC, uncapped)
8 Alex Dombrandt (Harlequins, Warlingham RFC, 23 caps)

Replacements

16 Kepueli Tuipulotu (Bath Rugby, Cwmbran RFC, uncapped)
17 Archie Van Der Flier (Leicester Tigers, Nottingham Rugby, uncapped)
18 Afolabi Fasogbon (Gloucester Rugby, Saracens Amateur RFC, uncapped)
19 Hugh Tizard (Saracens, Guildfordians RFC, uncapped)
20 Fitz Harding (Bristol Bears, Beaconsfield RFC, uncapped)
21 Raffi Quirke (Sale Sharks, Broughton Park RFC, 2 caps)
22 Charlie Atkinson (Gloucester Rugby, Oxford RFC, 1 cap)
23 George Hendy (Northampton Saints, Shipston-on-Stour RFC, uncapped)