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England’s selection problems at half-back have deepened after scrum-halves Alex Mitchell and Archie McParland were ruled out of Sunday’s autumn fixture against Australia.
With primary fly-half Fin Smith facing a race against time to overcome a calf strain ahead of the Wallabies’ trip to Allianz Stadium, England have been forced to exclude Mitchell and McParland from selection.
Mitchell sustained a hamstring problem on duty for Northampton against Gloucester on Saturday and will undergo a scan, casting doubt over his availability for the second stage of the Nations Championship.
McParland sat out the 28-14 win at Franklin’s Gardens following a calf injury picked up at England’s training camp last week, with team management hoping he returns in time to feature against Japan or New Zealand later this month.
To address the gaps in his 36-man squad, head coach Steve Borthwick has brought in Ben Spencer and Harry Randall.
Spencer is only three matches into his return from shoulder surgery with Bath, though he featured off the bench in the finale of England’s July tour against Argentina, while Randall has played every game for Bristol this season.
Both players are vying to support Leicester’s Jack van Poortvliet, who reclaimed the number nine jersey over the summer and was set to challenge Mitchell for the starting role against Australia.
Meanwhile, Immanuel Feyi-Waboso and Seb Atkinson have been recalled to the squad after proving their fitness following hamstring and knee issues by starting for Exeter and Gloucester respectively.
Their inclusion means Noah Caluori and Max Ojomoh drop out of the 36-player selection assembling at England’s Surrey training base on Monday evening.
Smith is being granted until Wednesday to demonstrate his fitness to direct the backline in the Ella Mobbs Trophy fixture, with George Ford, Marcus Smith and Charlie Atkinson providing options if he is unable to play.
A single change has been made to the forwards list following the withdrawal of uncapped hooker Kepueli Tuipulotu, who sustained a knee injury during last week’s three-day training session. Theo Dan comes in as his replacement to bolster depth alongside Jamie George and Luke Cowan-Dickie.
Following their meeting with Australia, England will play Japan and New Zealand on consecutive Saturdays prior to the Nations Championship finals weekend over 27-29.
“These fixtures take on added significance this autumn as they represent our final opportunity to face southern hemisphere opposition before next year’s World Cup,” World Cup said.
“Facing Australia next Sunday is an exciting challenge. They have played a significant amount of Test rugby in recent months and we know the quality and experience they will bring.”
England squad:
Forwards: F Baxter (Harlequins), O Chessum (Leicester Tigers), A Clark (Gloucester Rugby), A Coles (Northampton Saints), L Cowan-Dickie (Sale Sharks), B Curry (Sale Sharks), T Curry (Sale Sharks), T Dan (Saracens), B Earl (Saracens), G Fisilau (Exeter Chiefs), J George (Saracens), E Genge (Bristol Bears), J Heyes (Leicester Tigers), M Itoje (Saracens), E Iyogun (Northampton Saints), G Martin (Saracens), A Opoku-Fordjour (Sale Sharks), T Pearson (Northampton Saints), H Pollock (Northampton Saints), W Stuart (Bath Rugby).
Backs: S Atkinson (Gloucester Rugby), F Dingwall (Northampton Saints), I Feyi-Waboso (Exeter Chiefs), G Ford (Sale Sharks), T Freeman (Northampton Saints), G Furbank (Harlequins), W Joseph (Gloucester Rugby), J Marchant (Sale Sharks), C Murley (Harlequins), H Randall (Bristol Bears), H Slade (Exeter Chiefs), F Smith (Northampton Saints), M Smith (Harlequins), B Spencer (Bath Rugby), F Steward (Leicester Tigers), J van Poortvliet (Leicester Tigers).
