Elliott, Brantingham and Tizard named in England 'A' Squad

Saracens have had three players named in the England 'A' squad for the upcoming fixture against Ireland A at Ashton Gate Stadium.

Tobias Elliott, Phil Brantingham and Hugh Tizard have all been rewarded for their excellent form with a call up to face Ireland on Sunday 23rd February (13:00 GMT kick-off) in Bristol, with tickets available here. The match will be streamed live for free on RugbyPass TV/

Elliott has had a breakthrough season for Sarries with some scintillating performances from the wing, Brantingham has forced his way in to the squad with a string of powerful performances at loosehead, and Tizard gets another call-up with his consistent displays in the engine room.

Earlier on this week, Bath Rugby’s Lee Blackett was appointed the team’s head coach and attack coach for the game. He will be accompanied by Haydn Thomas (Exeter Chiefs, defence coach), Louis Deacon (Red Roses, forwards coach) and Matt Ferguson (Northampton Saints, scrum coach) as part of his staff for the match.

The coaching team was chosen by the RFU in consultation with Premiership Rugby, with the selection of the match day 23 determined by senior men’s head coach, Steve Borthwick, and RFU Executive Director of Performance Rugby, Conor O’Shea.

The squad will assemble at the Bristol Bears High Performance Centre next Tuesday (18th) to begin preparations for the fixture later that week, where they may be joined by selected players presently training with the senior squad. The coaching staff will be supported by Strength & Conditioning, Medical and Operational staff from across Premiership Rugby, Red Roses and England Rugby Pathway for the game.

Lee Blackett said: "It’s an honour to be a part of this team once again, even more so having now been trusted to lead it. I’m privileged to be surrounded by a fantastic coaching and support staff from the RFU and Premiership Rugby clubs, and we’re all keen to work with this exciting group of players.

“The players we have at our disposal is a real indication of the breadth of talent within the Premiership currently. A healthy proportion of the team have experience with the Men’s A team and are motivated to seize the opportunity whilst representing their country.

“With Haydn and I previously involved in the setup last November, we want to continue to develop a collaborative and supportive environment alongside Louis [Deacon] and Matt [Ferguson].”

England Men A wider squad to face Ireland A (includes current club and senior caps) 

Forwards

Alfie Barbeary (Bath Rugby)

Phil Brantingham (Saracens)

Richard Capstick (Exeter Chiefs)

Greg Fisilau (Exeter Chiefs)

Luke Green (Northampton Saints)

Tarek Haffar (Northampton Saints)

Jack Kenningham (Harlequins)

George Kloska (Bristol Bears)

Curtis Langdon (Northampton Saints, 2 caps)

Tom Lockett (Northampton Saints)

Gabriel Oghre (Bristol Bears)

Tom Pearson (Northampton Saints, 1 cap)

Hugh Tizard (Saracens)

Backs

Charlie Atkinson (Gloucester Rugby)

Orlando Bailey (Bath Rugby)

Will Butt (Bath Rugby)

Joe Carpenter (Sale Sharks)

Tobias Elliott (Saracens)

Ollie Hassell-Collins (Leicester Tigers, 2 caps)

George Hendy (Northampton Saints)

Josh Hodge (Exeter Chiefs)

Max Ojomoh (Bath Rugby)

Will Porter (Harlequins)

Jack van Poortvliet (Leicester Tigers, 16 caps)

Joseph Woodward (Leicester Tigers)

England Men A coaching staff for Ireland A fixture 

Lee Blackett – Head Coach and Attack Coach

Haydn Thomas - Defence Coach

Louis Deacon – Forwards Coach

Matt Ferguson – Scrum Coach