Asher Opoku-Fordjour, the powerhouse prop who’s made waves at Sale, has earned a call-up to England’s 36-player squad for their upcoming showdown with Australia.
RUCK’s Autumn Nations Series coverage is proudly powered by the My Name’5 Doddie Foundation, dedicated to creating a world free of MND. Join the the fight against MND here.
Stepping up after Joe Marler’s retirement announcement – just a day after England’s narrow 24-22 loss to the All Blacks – Opoku-Fordjour is set to bring his U20 World Championship-winning form to Twickenham.
Opoku-Fordjour, who has shown versatility this season by switching between loosehead and tighthead, even received praise from Marler himself after a standout performance in last season’s Harlequins vs. Sale clash. Now, he’s ready to fill those big boots and leave his own mark.
“Charlie Ewels: Back in the Pack”
Joining Opoku-Fordjour in the squad is Bath’s seasoned lock Charlie Ewels. Coming in for his fellow Bath man Ted Hill, Ewels adds experience and leadership to a pack looking to bounce back from last week’s heartbreak.
With England reloading for Australia, all eyes are set on Twickenham to see if these two newcomers can help England turn things around on home turf.
England’s 36-player squad:
Forwards
Fin Baxter (Harlequins)
Dan Cole (Leicester Tigers)
Alex Coles (Northampton Saints)
Luke Cowan-Dickie (Sale Sharks)
Chandler Cunningham-South (Harlequins)
Ben Curry (Sale Sharks)
Tom Curry (Sale Sharks)
Theo Dan (Saracens)
Trevor Davison (Northampton Saints)
Alex Dombrandt (Harlequins)
Ben Earl (Saracens)
Charlie Ewels (Bath Rugby)
Ellis Genge (Bristol Bears)
Jamie George (Saracens)
Nick Isiekwe (Saracens)
Maro Itoje (Saracens)
George Martin (Leicester Tigers)
Asher Opoku-Fordjour (Sale Sharks)
Will Stuart (Bath Rugby)
Sam Underhill (Bath Rugby)
Backs
Elliot Daly (Saracens)
Immanuel Feyi-Waboso (Exeter Chiefs)
George Ford (Sale Sharks)
Tommy Freeman (Northampton Saints)
George Furbank (Northampton Saints)
Ollie Lawrence (Bath Rugby)
Alex Lozowski (Saracens)
Luke Northmore (Harlequins)
Harry Randall (Bristol Bears)
Henry Slade (Exeter Chiefs)
Ollie Sleightholme (Northampton Saints)
Fin Smith (Northampton Saints)
Marcus Smith (Harlequins)
Ben Spencer (Bath Rugby)
Freddie Steward (Leicester Tigers)
Jack van Poortvliet (Leicester Tigers)
“Brutally targeted” – Five players who flopped in the opening round of the Autumn Nations Series
Here’s a look at five players who’ll want to leave their performances behind after the All Blacks defeated England and Scotland routed Fiji in the Autumn Nations Series opener.
Ellis Genge (England)
Guardian 5/10: “Back from calf injury and gassed by Tele’a for first try. Embraced the blitz defence but beaten by Jordan too easily as well.”
Telegraph 5/10: “Brutally targeted by the All Blacks for their opening tries by Tele’a and Jordan. Rule of thumb: don’t leave your prop exposed against All Black outside backs.”
Ben Spencer (England)
Guardian 5/10: “First start at 32 and looked nervous, caught out at one ruck on his own 22 and charged down. Settled thereafter but not the statement showing he’d have liked.”
