Five Leicester Tigers players have been included in the first England U20s training squad of the season.
Development squad wing Joe Browning, lock George Martin, full-back Freddie Steward, scrum-half Jack van Poortvliet and front-rower James Whitcombe have all been called up to the 45-player squad, named by new England U20s head coach Alan Dickens.
The squad will convene at Bisham Abbey in Buckinghamshire for a three-day camp later this week (November 28 to 30) as they begin preparations for the 2020 U20s Six Nations Championship.
All five players were part of the Tigers Academy’s unprecedented back-to-back league titles over the past two seasons, and stepped up to the club’s full-time development squad over the summer.
Steward had a first taste of senior rugby away to Sale Sharks in the Gallagher Premiership last season, and started alongside Martin and Van Poortvliet in the opening Premiership Rugby Cup fixture this term at Worcester.
Browning – who has also turned out for Loughborough Students in recent months – was part of the club’s Premiership Rugby 7s squad in September, and Whitcombe has been developing his game on loan at Leicester Lions, while all five have been training alongside the senior squad at Oval Park.
England U20s kick-off their Six Nations campaign away to France on Saturday, February 1 before a trip to Edinburgh to face Scotland, with home games against reigning champions Ireland (at Franklin’s Gardens) and Wales (at Kingsholm).
They round out the tournament with a trip to Italy on Sunday, March 15. A 32-man elite player squad will be named in January ahead of the start of the tournament.
England U20s Squad for November Training Camp
Lennox Anyanwu – Harlequins
Alfie Barbeary – Wasps
George Barton – Gloucester
Harvey Beaton – Saracens
Joe Browning – Leicester Tigers
Richard Capstick – Exeter Chiefs
Joseph Carpenter – Sale Sharks
Jack Clement – Gloucester
Phil Cokanasiga – London Irish
Tom Curtis – Sale Sharks
Theodor Dan – Saracens
Connor Doherty – Sale Sharks
Ben Donnell – London Irish
Callum Ford – Sale Sharks
Thomas Freeman – Northampton Saints
Josh Gillespie – Northampton Saints
Josh Gray – Gloucester
Luke Green – London Irish
Gabriel Hamer-Webb – Bath
George Hammond – Harlequins
Will Haydon-Wood – Newcastle Falcons
Josh Hodge – Newcastle Falcons
Emmanuel Iyogun – Northampton Saints
Barrie Karea – Exeter Chiefs
George Martin – Leicester Tigers
Sam Maunder – Exeter Chiefs
Nahum Merigan – Bath
Chunya Munga – London Irish
Zachery Nearchou – Wasps
Oliver Newman – Northampton Saints
Max Ojomoh – Bath
Raphael Quirke – Sale Sharks
Sam Riley – Harlequins
Tom Roebuck – Sale Sharks
Fin Rossiter – London Irish
Oliver Sleightholme – Northampton Saints
Freddie Steward – Leicester Tigers
Oliver Stonham – Saracens
Hugh Tizard – Harlequins
Jarett Tonks – Northampton Saints
Rusitate Tuima – Exeter Chiefs
Jack van Poortvliet – Leicester Tigers
Manu Vunipola – Saracens
Charlie Watson – Saracens
James Whitcombe – Leicester Tigers
England U20s Six Nations Fixtures
France v England
Saturday, February 1 (8.00pm GMT), Stade des Alpes, Grenoble
Scotland v England
Friday, February 7 (7.30pm GMT), Myreside, Edinburgh
England v Ireland
Friday, February 21 (7.45pm GMT), Franklin’s Gardens, Northampton
England v Wales
Friday, March 6 (7.45pm GMT), Kingsholm Stadium, Gloucester
Italy v England
Sunday, March 15 (5.30pm GMT), Payanini Rugby Center, Verona
