England’s World Cup preparations begin in earnest when Stuart Lancaster convenes his squad of 45 in June.
That extended party will need to be cut down for the tournament, by which time players will have to have proved form and fitness to earn inclusion.
And there will be no player Lancaster will be more keen to see tick those boxes than Manu Tuilagi.
The Leicester Tigers powerhouse is in the throes of a long-running groin injury that has wrecked his season. The 23-year-old has missed almost six months of rugby and will not feature for the Tigers again this season, per BBC Sport.
He remains in with a chance of being fit to figure in England’s three warm up games, which comprise a rerun of the thrilling Six Nations finale against France at Twickenham on August 15 and a return in Paris, before taking on Ireland at home on September 5.
They begin their World Cup campaign against Fiji less than two weeks later.
It is crucial for England's chances that Tuilagi recovers and is fit to play in England's key games.
Let's assess why he is the man they need.
from Bleacher Report http://ift.tt/1FOUm5A
via IFTTT April 16, 2015 at 09:34AM
0 comments:
Post a Comment