Strettle The Only Change For England

Saracens winger David Strettle has recovered from his sternum injury and takes over from Charlie Sharples on the left wing.

Among the England replacements, Bath’s Lee Mears comes in for Rob Webber, who injured a shoulder during last Sunday’s victory over France.

England head coach Stuart Lancaster said: “It seems like yesterday when we got together in Leeds in January and began a new journey for England Rugby.

“Graham (Rowntree), Andy (Farrell) and myself firmly believe in this group of players and the direction we are going.

“Saturday is another step on that road and we are looking forward to coming home to a packed Twickenham with its special atmosphere and crowd. Their support has been phenomenal and we hope we can do the whole nation proud again.”

He added: “David Strettle has now recovered from his injury and will replace Charlie Sharples, who gained valuable experience in Paris.

“It’s good to have Lee Mears on the bench and he will bring great energy and experience should he get a chance to come on.”

ENGLAND Team & Replacements (v Ireland, 2012 RBS 6 Nations Championship, Twickenham, Saturday, March 17, kick-off 5pm):

15. Ben Foden (Northampton Saints)
14. Chris Ashton (Northampton Saints)
13. Manu Tuilagi (Leicester Tigers)
12. Brad Barritt (Saracens)
11. David Strettle (Saracens)
10. Owen Farrell (Saracens)
9. Lee Dickson (Northampton Saints)
1. Alex Corbisiero (London Irish)
2. Dylan Hartley (Northampton Saints)
3. Dan Cole (Leicester Tigers)
4. Mouritz Botha (Saracens)
5. Geoff Parling (Leicester Tigers)
6. Tom Croft (Leicester Tigers)
7. Chris Robshaw (Harlequins) (capt)
8. Ben Morgan (Scarlets)

Replacements:

16. Lee Mears (Bath)
17. Matt Stevens (Saracens)
18. Tom Palmer (Stade Francais)
19. Phil Dowson (Northampton Saints)
20. Ben Youngs (Leicester Tigers)
21. Charlie Hodgson (Saracens)
22. Mike Brown (Harlequins)

Join the debate on www.irishrugby.ie/facebook or search #EngIrl on www.twitter.com/irfurugby.