Jack van Poortvliet will miss the Rugby World Cup with an ankle injury, with Alex Mitchell called into England’s 33-man squad as his replacement.
Northampton scrum-half Mitchell joined England’s training camp at Pennyhill Park in Bagshot this morning, after Leicester star Van Poortvliet limped out of Saturday’s madcap 19-17 victory over Wales at Twickenham.
Van Poortvliet will require surgery on his ankle problem and has been swiftly replaced in England’s line-up for France.
“It’s really bad luck for Jack, and we send him our very best wishes for a swift and successful recovery,” sand England boss Steve Borthwick.
Van Poortvliet trudged out of Saturday’s Wales clash in the first-half, having landed awkwardly after jumping to avoid team-mate Ollie Lawrence. The 22-year-old stood a fine chance of starting in England’s strongest XV at the World Cup, and his absence will prove a bitter blow to Borthwick.
England’s coaches view Van Poortvliet as offering the most balanced all-round game from the scrum-halves at their disposal, and his technical abilities would have been central to the Red Rose approach.
The returning Mitchell will now jump straight into selection contention alongside Youngs and Danny Care for Saturday’s World Cup warm-up Test trip to Dublin to face Ireland.
The Northampton playmaker can count himself unlucky to have missed out on England’s initial World Cup selection, and will offer zip and pace from the breakdown.
The 26-year-old was part of England’s wider training squad across a gruelling pre-season, so is already up to speed on boss Borthwick and new attack coach Richard Wigglesworth’s plans.
“Alex played in the Six Nations, he was involved in four of the five games during the Six Nations,” said Borthwick. “I’ve asked all of the players on standby to stay ready if needed to come into the squad at any point.”
England will start their World Cup campaign by facing Argentina in Marseille on Saturday, September 9.
Borthwick’s men have just two more warm-up matches before taking on the Pumas, with a clash against Fiji at Twickenham on Saturday, August 26 following this weekend’s trip to Dublin to take on Ireland.
