World Cup warm-up: Wales v England, Principality Stadium, Saturday, 5.30 (Live on Premier Sports 1 and Amazon Prime Sports
England are confident that Tom Curry will play a role in their build-up to the World Cup as he recovers from a twisted ankle.
Curry sustained the injury in training this week and will be sidelined for up to a fortnight, potentially ruling him out of the opening two matches of the Summer Nations Series which begins against Wales in Cardiff on Saturday.
The Sale flanker is a certainty to be picked in Steve Borthwick’s World Cup squad when it is announced on Monday, but England will take no risks with the fitness of one of their most influential players.
“We’re very hopeful [he’ll play this month]. We don’t think it will be too long, but we’ll be smart with him as well,” defence coach Kevin Sinfield said.
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Any concern over Henry Arundell’s hamstring injury has lifted after the explosive wing made a return to full training on Thursday.
England play the first of two Tests against Wales at the Principality Stadium fielding a line-up populated with players who are on the fringe of World Cup selection.
Only Freddie Steward, Marcus Smith, Danny Care, Ellis Genge and Will Stuart are assured of their places in the 33-man squad, while the others are hoping to make a final impression on Borthwick.
Sinfield, however, has downplayed the trial element of the visit to Cardiff as England look to build winning momentum.
“First and foremost, it’s a Test match. I’m sure some players will have selection in the back of their minds, but we want to show how we’ve improved,” Sinfield said.
“It would be unfair to say it’s all on this game because it’s not. We’ve got to take into account the last eight weeks, how players have performed throughout the season and exactly what we need going forward.
“There are some wonderful players who will miss out, sadly, because we can’t take everybody. We’ll try to get to the right place with the right balance within the squad.”
One player who has been making waves this summer is Northampton’s all-action backrow Tom Pearson, who Genge insists trains in the same we he plays – “like a man possessed”.
Pearson makes his debut on Saturday with a real chance of securing a place at the World Cup despite his inexperience.
“Tom’s been outstanding. We’ve all seen his physicality and how he plays the game and his explosive nature with London Irish last season. We’re all looking forward to seeing him play and he’s been excellent in camp,” Sinfield said.
Wales will step up their World Cup preparations, with George North claiming “the vibe is completely different” following a dismal Six Nations campaign last season.
A tense victory over Italy in Rome prevented a Six Nations whitewash and staved off the wooden spoon as Wales’ poor on field displays were mirrored by events off it through major financial issues in Welsh professional rugby and grave uncertainty with player contracts.
And those behind-the-scenes troubles led to a threatened players’ strike ahead of England’s last Cardiff visit in February.
“After the Six Nations, anything is better than that, really, after all the stuff going on. It is a much better place. The vibe is completely different,” North said.
“We all took it [Six Nations] very personally, as we do, because it is our fingerprints on it. And Gats [Wales head coach Warren Gatland] took it on himself to make it right. He has been back playing his normal mind-games, he has been around the boys geeing them up.
“He has had the ability to put his stamp on it, more than he did in the Six Nations, and the same with the coaches.
“We have had a lot more time on the paddock with them, a lot more time to sit down with them, being away in [training] camps, having a coffee with them and understanding how they see things working, bouncing ideas off them.
“Some of those sessions [in Switzerland and Turkey last month], you think there’s no way we can do it, but you grind it out as a team and you get what you want out of it.”
A fourth World Cup beckons for 113 times-capped centre North, who is among just four survivors from the 2011 tournament in Wales’ current training squad alongside Leigh Halfpenny, Dan Lydiate and Taulupe Faletau.
And the 31-year-old remains an integral part of Gatland’s plans, offering vast experience and a considerable midfield presence.
“I am still enjoying it, still loving it, still competing, which is the main thing,” he added.
“It is not just knowing your role, but knowing two or three roles – which can obviously help with selection – covering both wings, in the centre, knowing that injuries happen.
“And it’s just imparting some wisdom to the younger guys knowing that ‘yes, you can do this, but you need to be good at this and this to really open that opportunity’.”
WALES: Leigh Halfpenny; Louis Rees-Zammit, George North, Max Llewellyn, Rio Dyer; Sam Costelow, Gareth Davies; Corey Domachowski, Ryan Elias, Keiron Assiratti; Dafydd Jenkins, Will Rowlands; Christ Tshiunza, Jac Morgan, Aaron Wainwright.
Replacements: Elliot Dee, Nicky Smith, Henry Thomas, Ben Carter, Taine Plumtree, Tomos Williams, Dan Biggar.
ENGLAND: Freddie Steward; Max Malins, Joe Marchant, Guy Porter, Joe Cokanasiga; Marcus Smith, Danny Care; Ellis Genge, Jamie Blamire, Will Stuart; David Ribbans, George Martin; Lewis Ludlam, Tom Pearson, Alex Dombrandt.
Replacements: Theo Dan, Bevan Rodd, Kyle Sinckler, Jonny Hill, Tom Willis, Jack van Poortvliet, George Ford, Henry Slade.
