Steve Borthwick has named his England team. (Image: Getty.)
is back in good books and will start at full-back for in on Saturday. Borthwick has reshuffled his back line with Smith promoted from the bench, wing Tommy Freeman switched to centre and a new pair of wings.
Ollie Sleightholme, who has six tries in eight Tests, been axed, Sale’s Tom Roebuck will start and Elliot Daly shifts to the other wing from full-back. No.8 Tom Willis has been benched with Ben Earl starting there and Tom and Ben Curry the flankers. Luke Cowan-Dickie and Jamie George swaps places with Cowan-Dickie the starting man and Borthwick has given an indication of the future with Northampton’s uncapped 20-year-old flanker Henry Pollock on the bench.
And George Ford could make his first appearance of the and win his 99th cap if he comes off the bench. The fly-half last appeared against Australia in November before being an unused replacement against South Africa.
Borthwick was reluctant to praise Smith’s display off the bench in the 47-24 win over Italy on Sunday but the Harlequin has done enough to force his way back in.
Freeman has won all of his 19 caps on the wing but is shifted inside this weekend with Ollie Lawrence sidelined with an Achilles injury.
Freeman has appeared at 13 in stages of games for England but never started an international there. But has done the job 11 times for Northampton in the last two seasons.
Marcus Smith is back in the England team. (Image: Getty)
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The 24-year-old has scored in all four Six Nations games this tournament and is aiming to make it five in row and emulate French wing Philippe Bernat-Salles who did the trick in 2001.
Freeman will have Saints teammates all around him with Fin Smith at 10, Fraser Dingwall at 12 and Alex Mitchell at scrum-half.
Sale’s Roebuck arrived in camp on the back of nine tries in 12 games after making replacement appearances against Japan last summer and South Africa and Japan in the autumn.
He was first bought into the squad by Eddie Jones in 2022 but did not make his debut until that Tokyo Test last June.
Roebuck, 24 and born in Scotland but raised in the Wirral, has pace but is also good under the high ball and England are expecting plenty of those from the Welsh.
England are still in with a shot at the title but realistically need a bonus-point win in Cardiff and for France to slip up in Paris against Scotland later that night.
Ireland are not out of it but need a huge score against Italy and England and France to both get beaten.
England team v Wales: M.Smith, T.Roebuck, T.Freeman, F.Dingwall. E.Daly; F.Smith, A.Mitchell; E.Genge, L.Cowan-Dickie, W.Stuart, M.Itoje (capt), O.Chessum, T.Curry, B.Curry, B.Earl
Replacements: J.George, F.Baxter, J.Heyes, C.Cunningham-South, H.Pollock, T.Willis. J.van Poortvliet, G.Ford