Alex Dombrandt’s chances of starting for England against Ireland on Saturday have been thrown into doubt after the No 8 tested positive for Covid-19.
England coach Eddie Jones last night kept Dombrandt in his 36-man squad for the win-or-bust Six Nations clash.
The RFU said Dombrandt is expected to fully rejoin the England party this week, but at this stage he must be considered a doubt for the Twickenham clash.
Alex Dombrandt has tested positive for Covid-19 and may miss the game against Ireland
Bath flanker Sam Underhill makes a first appearance in an England squad this year after recovering from concussion, while Nic Dolly and Alex Mitchell also return.
Lock Jonny Hill, who had been having treatment on a lower leg injury, has returned to Exeter and won’t feature in England’s final two Six Nations matches.
Leicester’s Dolly provides hooking cover for Jamie George and Jamie Blamire after Luke Cowan-Dickie’s knee injury.
Northampton scrum-half Mitchell has been called up after Raffi Quirke suffered concussion in Sale’s 19-12 Gallagher Premiership defeat at Exeter yesterday.
The RFU said it expected Dombrandt to return to the fold in time for the game on Saturday
Sam Simmonds (right) is in line to replace Dombrandt against Ireland
Fringe backs Luke Northmore of Harlequins and Orlando Bailey of Bath are also included, but as expected there is no place for injured centre Manu Tuilagi.
Should Dombrandt not return in time, it is likely he will be replaced by Sam Simmonds of Exeter.
Jones’s England must beat Ireland to keep their Six Nations title hopes alive and Dombrandt impressed in the wins over Italy and Wales.
Speaking ahead of the showdown, wing Jack Nowell said: ‘By losing that game against Scotland at the start, every game now is must-win.
Jack Nowell admitted England could not afford to make any mistakes against Ireland
Eddie Jones’ men lost to Scotland before beating Italy and Wales in the tournament
‘It has cleared it up a little bit for us. We have literally got to go out every weekend and give it everything. There is no holding back.
‘We’ve got Ireland and then we’ve got France and they are some of the tougher games in the tournament.
‘We know if we don’t win then that’s it — it’s done.
‘You don’t normally win a Six Nations losing two games, so we know we’ve got to give everything every single week and hopefully the rest will look after itself.’
