England have been handed a major boost for their Six Nations opener against Ireland on Saturday with Alex Mitchell passed fit to start at scrum‑half. Mitchell gave Steve Borthwick a scare after sustaining a knee injury this month but he has been deemed ready to rekindle his half-back partnership with Marcus Smith in Dublin.
Mitchell sat out England’s entire autumn campaign with a neck injury and was missed as Borthwick’s side fell to three defeats out of four. He has emerged as the head coach’s first‑choice scrum-half, however, and – having taken a full part in the session on Monday after being unable to train last week – he is poised to retake the No 9 jersey against the defending champions.
