Owen Farrell has been an ever present feature of English rugby for the past 11 years, but he has been dropped for the first time since 2015 for this weekend's Six Nations match with France at Twickenham.
Ellis Genge will captain the side in the absence of the England skipper, with Harlequins fly-half Marcus Smith taking the number ten shirt for the match on Saturday. Farrell has been part of England's three matches so far, with two wins, but will start on the bench as Steve Borthwick shuffles his pack as England begin to look towards the World Cup in the autumn.
Smith was dropped from the training squad last week, with the fly-half being allowed to return to his club side for their annual Big Match at Twickenham against Exeter Chiefs last Saurday. Smith won man of the match in the 40-5 win and has earned his starting spot back having been benched in the wins against Italy and Wales.
