Steve Borthwick will discover if he must rip up England's World Cup plans in the coming days with Billy Vunipola and Owen Farrell both facing bans that would rule them out of the start of the tournament.
Vunipola's red card compounded another horror show in the dismal defeat against Ireland on Saturday, with the former fly-half Danny Cipriani declaring yesterday that "English rugby is digging its own grave" as countless supporters lose faith in Borthwick's side.
Vunipola was sent off for a high tackle in Dublin - seven days after Farrell's dismissal - and both players will learn their fates at hearings this week. Farrell was cleared at his initial hearing last week but after World Rugby appealed against that decision he must return to the dock again tomorrow.
Vunipola's red card is arguably more disastrous for Borthwick after he was named as the only No 8 in his 33-man World Cup squad but it is hard to think of two players upon whom the England head coach is more reliant.
Vunipola is just back from a long-term knee injury but Borthwick had stated his intention for the No 8 to "play as much as he possibly can" in England's warm-up campaign.
この記事は The Guardian の August 21, 2023 版に掲載されています。
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