England A told: Play what's in front of you

ENGLAND A will not be a replica of the senior side when they face Portugal at Welford Road next Sunday.

- PAUL REES

Attack coach Sam Vesty said the players would be told to play what was in front of them and use their heads rather than be tasked with getting to grips with England's new systems in defence and attack.

The players and coaches, who are led by Gloucester's George Skivington, will only have a week to prepare and Vesty, who has been part of Northampton's rise to the top of the Premiership this season, said they did not want to swamp the squad with detail.

"Having an A side again is an important step," said Vesty. "It bridges the gap between the U20s and the international team and brings the young talent of the country together.

"We have a specific job of getting a group ready for the Portugal game.

Simplicity is our friend and the message to players will be to get your head up and play what is in front of you.

"They will get fed up with me saying that and I hope it sticks. You cannot reinvent the wheel in a week.

"We want the players to be excited from day one. They will be in an environment that is very different to their club and Loughborough has all the facilities you could want."

The squad contains five players who have been capped, Ollie Hassell-Collins, Harry Randall, Jamie Blamire, Nick Isiekwe and Tom Pearson, and it will be supplemented by more players from the Six Nations squad who were not involved in the opening two rounds.