England head coach Steve Borthwick has made a major selection call ahead of the Autumn Internationals, leaving out Saracens number eight Tom Willis after the player confirmed he will move to France next season \u2014 a decision that effectively ends his England prospects.<\/p>\n
Join RUCK\u2019s Instagram broadcast channel <\/a>and get the latest rugby news straight to your phone.<\/p>\n Willis has been omitted after informing Borthwick of his decision to leave Saracens at the end of the season to join Bordeaux in France, a move that will make him ineligible for England selection under current rules. Borthwick confirmed he had a personal conversation with the player late last week.<\/p>\n \u201cTom told me his decision late last week, gave me a call and talked about some of the reasons he made the decision he has made to play in the future overseas,\u201d Borthwick said. \u201cThat was a private conversation so I am not going into those reasons but he knows how highly I rate him as a player and a person and I wished him well.<\/p>\n \u201cI think he also understands why I have decided all the time we have should be invested in players who are going to be at the World Cup in two years\u2019 time. We are aiming to win a World Cup for England, we want to win now and we want to win that World Cup in two years\u2019 time. <\/p>\n \u201cTom is not going to be part of that World Cup, given the decision he has made and he understands that, he understands the decision I made. I wished him well. He thought long and hard and found it a very tough decision to make so I wished him well.\u201d<\/p>\n Gearing up \u2699\ufe0f\ud83c\udf39<\/p>\n Steve Borthwick has named his 36-player squad for a three-day training camp ahead of the upcoming @QuilterNations<\/a>.@O2<\/a> | #WearTheRose<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 England Rugby (@EnglandRugby) October 19, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n Willis, who was handed an enhanced EPS contract back in August, remains under contract with the union for now, but Borthwick made it clear his focus has moved on. \u201cThe contract is in place and from my point of view after he told me last week my focus has been on this camp and this selection and not on contracts between a player and the union. I am focused on this.\u201d<\/p>\n Pressed on whether losing a player of Willis\u2019s calibre to France signalled a wider issue, Borthwick was philosophical. \u201cI think that you can see with Fin Smith, George Ford committing their futures to English rugby in recent weeks. If you go back a period of time, you\u2019ve seen other big figures of English rugby committing their future \u2013 Maro Itoje a year or so ago. <\/p>\n \u201cI think that we\u2019ve got a group of players that are passionate about playing for England. Tom has made a decision, players have decisions to make. I would expect this squad, with the talent we have, to be wanted by clubs all around the place and have big offers put in front of them. George Ford being a prime example of it, committing his future to English rugby.\u201d<\/p>\n Borthwick admitted he was disappointed to lose Willis but emphasised his duty to look forward. \u201cI\u2019ll say exactly what I said to Tom on the phone. I think he\u2019s a wonderful rugby player and a great bloke. He\u2019s made a decision. Players have to make decisions and everyone makes decisions for their own individual reasons. It\u2019s not for me to go into that decision he has made. <\/p>\n \u201cMy job is to then focus on who is going to be playing for England to win that World Cup in two years\u2019 time and who I should be investing time with now.\u201d<\/p>\n New season, same Henry Pollock \ud83e\udd73<\/p>\n \ud83d\udcfa @tntsports<\/a> & @discoveryplusUK<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/Z4nfhtJPbM<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Rugby on TNT Sports (@rugbyontnt) October 11, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n Borthwick pointed to the depth of options England have in the back row, highlighting the likes of Ben Earl, Chandler Cunningham-South and Henry Pollock as capable of stepping up. \u201cThe vast majority of games over the last two years have been started, at No.8, by Ben Earl. We all see Henry Pollock, with his ball carrying ability being strong in that position and Chandler. <\/p>\n \u201cUnfortunately Chandler can\u2019t train tomorrow but should be fit next week hopefully. I think we have got a multitude of options,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n He also praised the versatility and dynamism within England\u2019s back row stocks. \u201cYou start looking at that back row, looking at Emeka (Ilione), Sam Underhill and Guy Pepper and Tom Curry when he is fit and Ben Curry who will be back fit soon and Chandler, we have got good back row speed and dynamism with the talent we have got.\u201d<\/p>\n Tom Curry and Elliot Daly remain on track to return from injury during the autumn window, though they are not expected to feature against Australia. \u201cAt some stage in the autumn, I am sure both of them will be available to play,\u201d said Borthwick. \u201cThat\u2019s the assessment which is being made right now. There\u2019s still some medical sign-offs that you need to have but they are pretty well advanced. They are certainly not far away.\u201d<\/p>\n Among the faces in camp is 23-year-old Leicester back-rower Emeka Ilione, who Borthwick praised for his work rate and technical ability. \u201cHis performances in the second half of last season were exceptional, most of them were off the bench finishing games and he had a big impact. <\/p>\n \u201cThe start of this season he\u2019s continued that, including his ability at No 8. Everyone would say he is a brilliant jackaller\u2026 I\u2019ll add a slight nuance to that \u2013 he\u2019s fantastic over the ball, stealing ball and not conceding penalties. He\u2019s the best I can see at stealing the ball and doing it in a way that means the referee rewards him and doesn\u2019t give penalties against him.\u201d<\/p>\n Noah Caluori has got INSANE verticals \ud83d\udee9\ufe0f<\/p>\n Sam Warburton can barely believe what he’s watching from the 19-year-old flyer! <\/p>\n \ud83d\udcfa @TNTSports<\/a> & @DiscoveryplusUK<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/tGrksyxZxZ<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Rugby on TNT Sports (@rugbyontnt) October 18, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n Another exciting name included is 19-year-old Saracens wing Noah Caluori, invited to train after scoring five tries on his first Prem start against Sale Sharks on Saturday. Borthwick revealed Caluori has long been on England\u2019s radar. \u201cIt seems to you [that he is here quickly]. It was over a year ago that I started getting sent footage from Conor O\u2019Shea, Mark Mapletoft and Jonathan Pendlebury.<\/p>\n \u201cClearly the work he has done in pre season at Saracens and the start of the season he has had there, and it is immense credit to Saracens, he has had some experience. He has been on the radar for a good period of time.\u201d<\/p>\n With Australia less than two weeks away, Borthwick is under no illusions about the challenge ahead. \u201cThe great challenge we have is that preparation time and bringing the team together quickly.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat that means is us using every minute to ensure we\u2019re as well prepared as possible, keeping the preparations simple, going after two or three things and trying to do those things super well. I have full confidence in these players to come together quickly.\u201d<\/p>\n EDITORS PICKS:<\/p>\n 5 PLAYERS TO WATCH: ENGLAND PRE-AUTUMN NATIONS SERIES TRAINING CAMP<\/p>\n 1. NOAH CALUORI (SARACENS) <\/p>\n Bursting onto the scene following a sensational performance in the fourth round of the Gallagher PREM, is Saracens\u2019 latest break-out talent Noah Caluori. The hot-stepping wing was the headline act of the past weekend of the English top flight, as Caluori scored an astonishing five tries as Saracens dismantled Sale Sharks down at the StoneX Stadium. <\/p>\n This win over the Manchester club was only Caluori\u2019s third PREM Rugby fixture, as the 19-year-old has been fast-tracked into the England squad under a \u2018Development Player\u2019 role. England fans have become steadily familiar with this terminology over the years, with the likes of Marcus Smith taking up the role ahead of the 2019 Rugby World Cup. Caluori has gained previous international honours within the England U20 set-up, as the 19-year-old starred for Mark Mapletoft\u2019s side throughout the latest U20 World Championships. <\/p>\n Caluori made his Saracens debut in the latest pre-season, as he ran out for the North Londoners in the PREM Rugby Cup defeat to Leicester Tigers. The future is certainly bright for Caluori, should he keep up this meteoric rise to prominence and take valuable learnings from his time within the senior England environment. Remember the name with big things expected from the bright young spark. <\/p>\n CONTINUES ON PAGE TWO<\/a><\/p>\n Like this:<\/p>\n Like Loading…<\/p>\n