England men U20s head coach Alan Dickens has named his 32-man Elite Player Squad for the 2020 campaign, with Northampton Saints' JJ Tonks and Ollie Sleightholme named among the squad.
Tonks and Sleightholme will join the squad at Bisham Abbey national sports centre as they convene on Sunday 5 January to continue their preparations for their first Six Nations fixture against France in Grenoble, on Saturday 1 February (KO 20:00 GMT).
Dickens' squad will return to Franklin’s Gardens with the Red Rose for the first time on Friday 21 February, as England host Ireland for their third clash of the tournament – tickets are available now and can be purchased by CLICKING HERE.
And the England U20s head coach said: “Players have been selected through a combination of their performances last year and displays in domestic and European competitions this season. It’s been encouraging to see a number of the group playing Premiership, Champions Cup and Challenge Cup rugby and I believe we’ve selected a really strong 32 for our elite player squad.
“I want to see the players arrive in camp on Sunday with a desire to learn, improve and take in a high level of detail. We have less than a month to bond as a squad before our first Six Nations fixture so getting them to gel will be a key challenge for the players as well as management team. I also want players to enjoy themselves. Being selected for England at any level is a proud moment in their careers and they should remember that. Hopefully, this is the next step in their ultimate dream of playing for the senior side."
ENGLAND U20s 2020 EPS SQUAD
Forwards
Alfie Barbeary (Wasps Rugby)
Harvey Beaton (Saracens)
Richard Capstick (Exeter Chiefs)
Jack Clement (Gloucester Rugby)
Sam Crean (Saracens)
Theodore Dan (Saracens)
Ben Donnell (London Irish)
Rob Farrar (Newcastle Falcons)
Josh Gray (Gloucester Rugby)
Luke Green (London Irish)
George Martin (Leicester Tigers)
Nahum Merigan (Bath Rugby)
Hugh Tizard (Harlequins)
JJ Tonks (Northampton Saints)
Rusiate Tuima (Exeter Chiefs)
James Whitcombe (Leicester Tigers)
Backs
George Barton (Gloucester Rugby)
Joe Carpenter (Sale Sharks)
Tom Curtis (Sale Sharks)
Connor Doherty (Sale Sharks)
Gabriel Hamer-Webb (Bath Rugby)
Will Haydon-Wood (Newcastle Falcons)
Noah Heward (Worcester Warriors)
Josh Hodge (Newcastle Falcons)
Max Ojomoh (Bath Rugby)
Sam Maunder (Exeter Chiefs)
Raphael Quirke (Sale Sharks)
Tom Roebuck (Sale Sharks)
Ollie Sleightholme (Northampton Saints)
Freddie Steward (Leicester Tigers)
Jack Van Poortvliet (Leicester Tigers)
Manu Vunipola (Saracens)
ENGLAND MEN U20s SIX NATIONS FIXTURES
France v England
Saturday, 1 February, KO 8pm GMT, Stade des Alpes, Grenoble
Scotland v England
Friday 7 February, KO 7.30pm GMT, Myreside, Edinburgh
England v Ireland
Friday, 21 February, KO 7.45pm GMT, Franklin’s Gardens, Northampton. CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE TICKETS.
England v Wales
Friday, 6 March, KO 7.45pm GMT, Kingsholm Stadium, Gloucester.
Italy v England
Sunday, 15 March, KO 5.30pm GMT, Payanini Rugby Center, Verona
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