Injured Hughes and Lawes miss England squad for Ireland showdown

Nathan Hughes and Courtney Lawes have been left out of England’s squad to face Ireland after the pair suffered knee injuries in the Six Nations defeat to France.

Hughes limped out of the first half of the 22-16 reverse at the Stade de France, while England have also now confirmed a knock for Lawes, with neither included in a 32-man selection. 

Both forwards are set for scans on Monday, with Exeter Chiefs’ Don Armand called up.

Captain Dylan Hartley missed the Paris loss with a tight calf, but he is included as England look to deny Ireland a Grand Slam at Twickenham.

Sam Simmonds, on the bench against France, is not in the squad preparing for Saturday’s match, when the hosts will be out to avoid a third consecutive loss.

It is a game that also affords Eddie Jones’ side the chance to gain some revenge for last year’s Six Nations reverse against Ireland, which denied England a second Grand Slam on the bounce. 

SQUAD UPDATE |

England head coach Eddie Jones names a 32-man squad to begin preparations for their final NatWest 6 Nations match against Ireland.

Find out who:   https://t.co/S1ug2bNx2t pic.twitter.com/2LW5oJirIg

— England Rugby (@EnglandRugby) March 11, 2018

Forwards: Don Armand, Dan Cole, Luke Cowan-Dickie, Charlie Ewels, Jamie George, Dylan Hartley, James Haskell, Alec Hepburn, Nick Isiekwe, Maro Itoje, George Kruis, Joe Launchbury, Joe Marler, Chris Robshaw, Sam Simmonds, Kyle Sinckler, Mako Vunipola.

Backs: Mike Brown, Danny Care, Elliot Daly, Nathan Earle, Owen Farrell, George Ford, Jonathan Joseph, Alex Lozowski, Jonny May, Henry Slade, Marcus Smith (apprentice player), Denny Solomona, Ben Te’o, Anthony Watson, Richard Wigglesworth.

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