EXETER Chiefs back Henry Slade has been included in England’s training squad for the upcoming Six Nations Championship.
With Immanuel Feyi-Waboso ruled out due to a dislocate shoulder, the 31-year-old is the sole representative from the Chiefs selected by head coach Steve Borthwick.
England kick-off their campaign on February 1 with a testing trip to Dublin to face Ireland at the Aviva Stadium.
Slade, who currently has 69 caps to his name, is one of a number of centrally contracted England players selected by Borthwick, who has also confirmed that Maro Itoje will be the new captain for the tournament, taking over from Saracens club-mate Jamie George.
The decision not to award the captaincy to George could mean that Borthwick is considering Cornishman Luke Cowan-Dickie for a potential starting role. The Sale Sharks hooker has been in sparkling form this season for his club and was also impressive off the bench for England during the Autumn Nations Series.
“I’ve selected a squad where every player brings something unique to the group,” said Borthwick. “The Six Nations is always a fiercely contested and exciting tournament and this year will be no exception.”
ENGLAND SIX NATIONS TRAINING SQUAD
Forwards: Fin Baxter (Harlequins), Ollie Chessum (Leicester), Alex Coles (Northampton), Luke Cowan-Dickie (Sale), Chandler Cunningham-South (Harlequins), Ben Curry (Sale), Tom Curry (Sale), Theo Dan (Saracens), Alex Dombrandt (Harlequins), Ben Earl (Saracens), Ellis Genge (Bristol), Jamie George (Saracens), Joe Heyes (Leicester), Ted Hill (Bath), Maro Itoje (Saracens), George Martin (Leicester), Asher Opoku-Fordjour (Sale), Bevan Rodd (Sale), Will Stuart (Bath), Tom Willis (Saracens).
Backs: Oscar Beard (Harlequins), Elliot Daly (Saracens), Fraser Dingwall (Northampton), George Ford (Sale), Tommy Freeman (Northampton), Ollie Lawrence (Bath), Alex Mitchell (Northampton), Cadan Murley (Harlequins), Harry Randall (Bristol), Tom Roebuck (Sale), Henry Slade (Exeter), Ollie Sleightholme (Northampton), Fin Smith (Northampton), Marcus Smith (Harlequins), Freddie Steward (Leicester), Jack van Poortvliet (Leicester).