England are still hoping Tom Curry and Alex Dombrandt will be available to face Ireland after both forwards were included in a 26-man squad for Saturday’s penultimate Six Nations weekend. Wasps’ uncapped forward Alfie Barbeary, though, has been retained as cover with his clubmate Joe Launchbury poised for his first matchday involvement in this year’s tournament at the expense of Saracens’ Nick Isiekwe.
Curry came off at half-time against Wales after failing a head injury assessment while Dombrandt has been in isolation since testing positive for Covid-19 last Friday. The absence of the fit-again Sam Underhill suggests England remain optimistic about Curry’s prognosis, with Exeter’s Sam Simmonds on hand to join the starting back row if Dombrandt cannot train on Thursday.
