Scrum-half Alex Mitchell is out of England's trip to Murrayfield after suffering a knee injury; Bristol Bears' Harry Randall has been called up in his place; Ollie Lawrence has returned to full training to boost Steve Borthwick's centre options following Manu Tuilagi's return to the squad
Monday 19 February 2024 14:37, UK
England's prospects of reclaiming the Calcutta Cup from Scotland have been dealt a blow after Alex Mitchell was ruled out of the Murrayfield showdown with a knee problem.
The RFU confirmed the scrum-half will miss the pivotal Guinness Six Nations Round 3 game because of an injury that requires further investigation before a date for his return can be set.
Bristol Bears' Harry Randall has been named as the replacement in Steve Borthwick's 36-man training squad with Danny Care and Ben Spencer competing to fill the void in the No 9 jersey in Edinburgh.
The loss of Mitchell, who scored a try in the opening win over Italy in Rome and started in the narrow victory against Wales at Twickenham, was offset by the news Ollie Lawrence has been cleared to resume full training.
The Bath centre had suffered a hip injury during his club's Investec Champions Club match against Toulouse last month and it was initially feared he would miss the entire Six Nations. However, he is now in line to feature against Scotland.
Lawrence's availability follows Manu Tuilagi, George Martin and Luke Cowan-Dickie all returning to the training squad last week ,and the return of Tuilagi and Lawrence leaves Borthwick with a decision to make around whether to continue with Fraser Dingwall in midfield.
Fly-half Marcus Smith has linked back up with the England squad as well to continue his rehabilitation from a calf injury, although no date has yet been set for his return to playing.
England are seeking to make it three wins from three in this year's Six Nations when they face Scotland, who have won the past three meetings against their old rivals. Borthwick names his team for the match on Thursday.
Dan Cole was given the green light to continue his England career by wife Isobel having decided he did not want to join the contingent of players retiring after last year's Rugby World Cup.
Cole took stock of his Test future after helping England finish third at last autumn's global showpiece knowing that Courtney Lawes, Jonny May and Ben Youngs had already played their final international games.
The 36-year-old prop has re-established himself in the front row under Borthwick after spending three years in Red Rose exile and is eager to make the most of his time at the top.
"My wife is very understanding that I haven't got many games left," Cole said. "It was a joint decision.
"She understands that with Steve and the coaches that she knows from Leicester, it is a very good team environment and place to be. I won't be doing it forever, so enjoy it."
Cole has yet to decide on whether or not this year's Six Nations will be his last for the national team though.
"I haven't made up my mind," Cole said. "I haven't thought about it so far, we'll see how it goes.
"After the World Cup I thought about everything really. I had a conversation with Steve, and he said to me after Courtney had announced his retirement at a press conference 'are you planning any press conferences or announcements?'.
"I said that 'I've got to speak to my wife and to you Steve because if you're not going to pick me, then I will'. He said that I'd like you to have the option [to play on]. I was like fair enough because I owe Steve a lot - and here I am.
"It's one of those things where you never want to give up, but at the same time you can understand why boys with families do because international rugby is a tough environment to be in. It's intense."
