England captain Itoje on the bench for Six Nations opener against Wales
England captain Maro Itoje will be on the bench for his side's Six Nations opener at home to Wales on Saturday.
Itoje has been grieving the death of his mother Florence, with Saracens teammate Jamie George – himself a former England captain – now leading the side out as they seek to make it 12 wins in a row.
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Fellow forward Itoje will, however, take over as skipper should he take the field at Twickenham.
Henry Arundell will make his first England start since the 2023 World Cup after being named on the left wing in a team announced Monday – unusually early – by coach Steve Borthwick.
Arundell featured in the bronze final against Argentina two-and-a-half-years ago but became unavailable for England selection when he signed for French club Racing 92 because of a Rugby Football Union rule effectively banning players at non-English clubs from test duty.
Now at Bath, the 23-year-old flyer made his England comeback as a replacement against Fiji in November.
Ready for the first test 👊
Head coach Steve Borthwick has named his 23-player match day squad to face Wales in our opening game of the @SixNationsRugby 🌹@O2 | #WearTheRose — England Rugby (@EnglandRugby) February 2, 2026
England (15-1)
Freddie Steward; Immanuel Feyi-Waboso, Tommy Freeman, Fraser Dingwall, Henry Arundell; George Ford, Alex Mitchell; Ben Earl, Sam Underhill, Guy Pepper; Ollie Chessum, Alex Coles; Joe Heyes, Jamie George (capt), Ellis Genge
Replacements: Luke Cowan-Dickie, Bevan Rodd, Trevor Davison, Maro Itoje, Tom Curry, Henry Pollock, Ben Spencer, Marcus Smith
Coach: Steve Borthwick (ENG)
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