- PLUS: Former England skipper ahead of special moment overseas
- Join Mail+ to stay on top of the game with Rugby Confidential every Wednesday and Chris Foy’s World of Rugby every Monday.
Good news for England’s Six Nations campaign: Ollie Chessum is set to feature for the first time since October in Leicester’s Champions Cup tie with Toulouse.
The giant forward suffered a knee injury during the team’s training camp in Girona and missed the entire fall season.
Chessum’s number six shirt has been taken by Chandler Cunningham-South, but Tiger’s timely return means he should be ready to move straight back into England’s starting squad against Ireland.
England travel to a warm-weather training camp in Spain next week before heading straight to Dublin for their Six Nations opener. However, as was the case with Henry Slade before the autumn Tests, Chessum may be given a special exemption to return to Leicester next weekend in a bid to get more playing time in the Premiership.
He is likely to feature on the bench for his club’s Champions Cup clash on Sunday, with club manager Michael Cheika trying to persuade Borthwick to release him next week.
Leicester are also expecting George Martin to return from injury, with both forwards perfectly timed to return for international duty. Their return will be key to the make-up of Borthwick’s pack, with the gritty Leicester duo likely to be the first choice in the number 5 and 6 jerseys.
England have been given a boost ahead of the Six Nations with Ollie Chessum set to make his first Leicester appearance since October.
George Martin is also expected to return from injury to help Steve Borthwick.
The RFU must temporarily abandon its naming rights deal with Twickenham and Allianz for this summer’s World Cup.
A multi-million pound deal has been struck to call the stadium the Allianz Stadium.
However, the deal is expected to clash with World Rugby’s tournament sponsorship rules, meaning the brand would have to be removed.
Twickenham will be forced to drop Allianz from their name during the summer’s World Cup due to a clash over sponsorship rules.
Ireland are set to sign another England qualified player with Dan Kelly set to sign for Munster.
Leicester center Kelly was named in Steve Borthwick’s first England squad but was ruled out due to injury.
He represented Ireland Under-20s as a junior and followed in the footsteps of Billy Burns and Will Addison into the Ireland squad in a cross-Channel move.
Dan Kelly could be in line for an Ireland call-up if he moves from Leicester to Munster.
Belinda Moore, the Wales Rugby Union’s new head of women’s rugby, is the wife of former England hooker Brian Moore.
Her husband, a prominent pundit, has previously suggested that the England women’s team should train against the men’s under-20s team.
She is focused on appointing a new director and is not expected to accept his ideas for the new role. Gloucester-Hartpury head coach Sean Lynn is among the frontrunners.
Owen Farrell is hoping to make his first appearance at La Defense Arena when Racing 92 take on the Stormers this weekend.
The former England skipper is yet to play at the iconic stadium in central Paris, which has fallen out of use after being temporarily converted into a swimming pool for the Olympics. Farrell has been out since November with a groin injury and is hoping to pass a fitness test to return this weekend.
Owen Farrell is hoping to make his first appearance at La Defense Arena for Racing 92 this weekend.
