It’s Burgess v Slade in a World Cup shootout
Burgess and Slade play for one slot
WHEN Sam Burgess and Henry Slade line up together in England’s midfield on Saturday, they will be both partners and rivals. Only one of them can survive this audition to reach the World Cup.
The novice centres vying for a place in Stuart Lancaster’s final tournament squad are two of the three uncapped players in the side to face France at Twickenham in the opening warm-up match — the other being Northampton flanker Calum Clark.
As first revealed by Sportsmail last month, Burgess and Slade will form a new 12-13 alliance for the national team, but there is no prospect of the pair being on duty next month.
Asked if he could consider including two international newcomers among a contingent of just four centres, head coach Lancaster said: ‘ That would be a big step, to have both of them there.’
It has emerged that there may be further cuts made to the England squad as early as next week, so if either of the pair fail to impress they could be released within days.
Tom Wood will lead an n experimental home e line-up on Saturday andd he gave a stark summary of what is at stake.
‘There will be Worldd Cup places up for grabs. . Everything on the line,’ ’ said the Saints flanker. r. ‘For some people, it iss effectively a final — if you don’t play well, you’re going home. It is three guys’ debut, it is my first chance to captain the team at Twickenham. It is a massive game in its own right and we will be treating it like a full-blooded Test match.’
As captain in the temporary absence of Chris Robshaw, who is rested until the return fixture in Paris on August 22, Wood suggested the centres need to give a competitive demonstration of the potential they’ve shown in training.
‘It is time to see it,’ he said. ‘We have some great guys not playing this week who are pretty nailed on — the likes of Brad Barritt, Jonathan Joseph, Luther Burrell. It is up to these guys to come and knock the door down.
‘For Sam in particular, there is no question of his pedigree, his temperament, his composure — it’s about whether his instincts are up to scratch at Test level in union. That is a question hopefully he will answer positively on Saturday. He has been great in training.
‘Sladey has played well all year for Exeter. He is dangerous with the ball in hand. He is elusive, he is composed, he has a good kicking game.’
Lancaster has repeatedly been forced to defend the management’s desire to fasttrack Burgess into World Cup contention as a centre, despite his best appearances for Bath last season coming after his switch to the back row.
Asked if the 26-year-old has exceeded expectations with his rapid development in union, the head coach said: ‘I wouldn’t say he has exceeded — I’m open-minded at the moment. To come in and learn a new code is a difficult thing to do and he has done it effectively at Bath. His contribution in the Premiership final was good, his physicality in defence — I remember him smashing Billy Vunipola.
‘He has brought those points of difference and worked hard to learn the game. This is the next step, to see if he can become an international player. He’s not got a free pass into the team because we’ve got other guys like Billy Twelvetrees and Luther Burrell who have done well.’
There are other areas of intrigue in Saturday’s selection — notably how No 8 Ben Morgan fares on his return from a broken ankle, how Clark handles his debut and the competing claims of Alex Goode and Danny Cipriani in the back line. But the spotlight will shine brightest on midfield.
IRELAND flanker Tommy O’Donnell will miss the World Cup after dislocating his hip in Saturday’s win over Wales.