ENGLAND V FRANCE: TEAM NEWS
Injuries have ravaged this England side in the lead-up to the 2017 Six Nations and Eddie Jones has expressed his determination to add strength in depth to the national pool by the time the 2019 World Cup comes along.
Mako Vunipola, Chris Robshaw, Anthony Watson and George Kruis are just a handful of those missing.
Elliot Daly starts on the wing for England, with the in-form Jack Nowell on the bench. Nowell missed two days of training due to personal reasons but Jones insists that had no bearing on his team selection.
Tom Wood and Nathan Hughes accompany Maro Itoje in the back row, with Joe Launchbury and Courtney Lawes in the second row.
As for France, they have just six players starting that lost to England last March. Gael Fickou switches to Wesley Fofana’s position after the latter tore his Achilles.
Baptiste Serin, 22, makes his scrum-half nod in the Six Nations, while flanker Kevin Gourdon and loose-head prop Cyril Baille are also making their tournament debuts.
