Chris Ashton will replace the injured Manu Tuilagi on England’s bench for the first autumn international against South Africa on Saturday.
The Leicester centre suffered a minor groin strain in training and will miss the Twickenham date, although he could be back in training as early as Sunday ahead of next week’s clash with New Zealand.
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England opted to start with Ben Te’o and Henry Slade at centre against the Springboks, with Tuilagi beating out Sale Sharks winger Ashton for a spot among the finishers.
The injury puts Ashton back in line for his first England appearance since 2014, which included a spell in France with Toulon.
Tuilagi’s absence from the England squad – he has only played a handful of minutes in four years – has often come because of more significant groin issues.
Scrum coach Neal Hatley said: “Manu’s disappointed. He desperately wanted to play for England again.
“It’s just a small strain and he’ll back training with us on Sunday. He’d put a good run in with his club, but he’s buoyed by the fact that he’ll be back in to prepare for New Zealand next weekend.”
Ashton provides back-up for Jonny May and Jack Nowell, who were preferred on the wing when Eddie Jones named his XV on Thursday morning.
Updated England squad: 15 Elliot Daly, 14 Jack Nowell, 13 Henry Slade, 12 Ben Te’o, 11 Jonny May, 10 Owen Farrell (co-capt), 9 Ben Youngs; 1 Alec Hepburn, 2 Dylan Hartley (co-capt), 3 Kyle Sinckler, 4 Maro Itoje, 5 George Kruis, 6 Brad Shields, 7 Tom Curry, 8 Mark Wilson.
Replacements: 16 Jamie George, 17 Ben Moon, 18 Harry Williams, 19 Charlie Ewels, 20 Zach Mercer, 21 Danny Care, 22 George Ford, 23 Chris Ashton.
#Followtherose this autumn with all of England’s Tests live on Sky Sports throughout November. The action starts on Saturday, November 3 against South Africa before clashes against New Zealand, Japan and Australia.
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