Dewi Morris reflects on some of the difficult selection issues that faced Stuart Lancaster, and urges the man in charge to give starting places to young players...
Not much has jumped out at me in England's squad selection, despite the exclusion of Gloucester’s Matt Kvesic.
Stuart Lancaster has picked Chris Robshaw, Calum Clark and James Haskell - none of whom are specialist number sevens. It suggests that big is beautiful but I think it’s interesting that he’s opted go for three players who would wear 6.5 on their back rather than 7.
This comes off the back of reports that Steffon Armitage didn’t end up coming home because the RFU would not guarantee him a spot in the Elite Player Squad – though I’m not privy to those conversations so I don’t know what was said.
You have to be prepared to risk losing in order to learn.
The other talking point is the inclusion of Semesa Rokoduguni. Jack Nowell is back from injury so it ends up being Chris Ashton and Christian Wade who miss out and for me it’s the right decision. Ashton is a chaser, he’s a harasser, he's an out-and-out speedster, while Rokoduguni has shown that he’s a stepper who can add great attacking value and an extra ingredient, which is exactly what England needs.
Wade is one of the smallest wingers around but size isn’t everything and he scored that wonderful try against Leinster over the weekend to prove it. He is a talented player and is unlucky to play in a position where there is so much competition.
People have been making a big deal of Danny Cipriani not being included in the squad and I think that’s fair. Stephen Myler is probably the safe option and the other two, George Ford and Owen Farrell were always going to get picked so that leaves no room for the Sale man, which is unfortunate for him. I’ve always said that while Myler can steer a ship, Cipriani can change the course of that ship – he’s an incredibly gifted player.
The message that I would be passing on to Cipriani - and the one that I’m sure his coach Steve Diamond is communicating - is that it’s important he keeps his head up and bides his time. Nobody would wish an injury on a player but the very nature of this sport dictates that there will be injuries, so if Cipriani keeps performing the way he did against Munster on Saturday then he will be in with a shout in the future.
When it comes to the four games of the Autumn Internationals themselves, I would like to see England give younger players a genuine chance to test themselves. Lancaster's ethos is firstly about picking players who are in form, but he also likes rewarding players with loyalty if they've produced for him on previous occasions.
What I would like to see is for Lancaster to play George Ford, Kyle Eastmond and Jonathan Joseph as a starting backline combination for at least two of the games - just to try something different. Against New Zealand and South Africa you can pick your solid options and your bigger guys, but against Samoa and Australia I’d like to see those three start the game and maybe even Rokoduguni on the wing because those matches will be more open.
We all know who will be starting in the big games but there is a lot to be seen from the second wave of players who provide the alternative options - because in a World Cup if you are one dimensional you aren't going to go anywhere. If Lancaster tries a new combination in either one of the Samoa or Australia games he might lose the game, but you have to be prepared to risk losing in order to learn.
It's important to give them starts in a test match so they can see what it's like to be a part of the game management from the team announcement on the Sunday or Monday. From there they get to see how the starting fifteen act in training, how they command the training and cope with the pressure in the build-up to the game.
Ten minutes off the bench is great but you don't really learn that much from it because quite often the game has already been won or lost at that point. Lancaster has to put these guys in full-pressure situations so that he has the right kind of selection problems when it comes to picking his squad for next year's World Cup.
Watch England's Autumn Internationals live on Sky Sports
