Tindall promoted to captain’s role

The 31-year-old South Africa-born openside flanker has failed to recover sufficiently from a calf injury suffered on Leeds duty 11 days ago and has been sent back to his club to get more training and game-time under his belt.

Fourie has not undergone a full week of training with England and although deemed fit enough to feature for Leeds in the LV Cup against Northampton on Saturday, it is thought tomorrow night’s trip to the Millennium Stadium has come a day early.

England forecast Fourie will be fit and ready to fill injured captain Lewis Moody’s boots against Italy at Twickenham next Saturday, but before then it is the uncapped Tom Wood of Northampton who has been called into the back row, with Stade Francais’ James Haskell taking the No 7 shirt.

Assuming Moody’s captaincy role is Tindall, the Otley-born centre who is a veteran of 66 caps, a World Cup triumph and numerous Six Nations campaigns since making his debut 11 years ago this weekend.

Tindall got the nod ahead of Nick Easter to wear the captain’s armband for the first time, though team manager Martin Johnson said the latter would have a role in marshalling the pack and inexperienced scrum-half Ben Youngs. Johnson said: “Nick will do a good job leading the forwards, he’s closer in to the play there and will give us direction with Ben and Toby (Flood) at 10.

“Mike’s a good captain, very experienced, but if he’s not there we’ve got Nick and Louis Deacon who’s had a real good week as well – it’s good to have him back and in good form.”

On Wood, who has been fast-tracked into a debut because of the injuries despite not being named in Johnson’s initial 33-man squad for the tournament, Johnson said: “It’s a chance for Tom to come and play.

“Would he have got there with all the guys fit? Probably not, but he’s worth a look and worth his place – he was very impressive in the autumn when he came in and the way he’s playing with his club is impressive.

“It’s not great to have guys injured but (it is) great to get Tom on the field in a big-time Test match. He’s 24 so he’s not in his first year of it, he’s got a bit of experience.

“Tom’s good in the breakdown, even though he’s an aerial player. Louis Deacon is also a good all-round player, very good at the breakdown and very good organisationally in the lineout, so I think we’re fine. We’ve got good carrying ability in that back five as well with James (Haskell) coming in.

“All those back-row guys are slightly different and it is a good combination we’ve got.”

Leeds’s Steve Thompson starts on the bench as replacement hooker while former Tyke Tom Palmer starts at lock and former Bradford Bulls rugby league player Shontayne Hape continues in the centre alongside Tindall. Leeds-born scrum-half Danny Care is also on the bench.

Tomorrow’s match marks the start of a World Cup year for England, but former World Cup-winning captain Johnson is refusing to look too far ahead.

“We want to push in competitions, which we always do,” he said. “If we win the game then great, if not we’ll take our medicine and play from there. Despite what’s happening later in the year, the Six Nations is a great tournament and it’s also five stand-alone important Test matches.”

Wales’ coaching staff yesterday admitted to holding a ‘long debate’ over whether to hand James Hook the fly-half playmaker’s role for the visit of England.

They instead opted for 95 times-capped Stephen Jones, with versatile Hook starting at full-back after some impressive cameos in the No 10 shirt for Ospreys in the Magners League.

Backs coach Rob Howley said: “We spoke about James going into 10. It was a long debate. We’ve gone for Test-experienced half-backs, two British and Irish Lions (Jones and Mike Phillips). Steve hasn’t done anything wrong.

“James showed that when he played for the Ospreys over the Christmas period, when he went in at first receiver, he offered a running and creative threat. It’s up to us as a backline to get him into the game as often as possible.”

Wales: J Hook (Ospreys); M Stoddart (Scarlets), J Roberts (Cardiff), J Davies (Scarlets), S Williams (Ospreys); S Jones (Scarlets), M Phillips (Ospreys); P James (Ospreys), M Rees (Scarlets, capt), C Mitchell (Ospreys), B Davies (Cardiff), A-W Jones (Ospreys), D Lydiate (Newport), S Warburton (Cardiff), A Powell (Wasps). Replacements (tbc): R Hibbard (Ospreys), J Yapp (Cardiff), R Jones (Ospreys), J Thomas (Ospreys), D Peel (Sale), R Priestland (Scarlets), L Byrne (Ospreys).

England: B Foden (Northampton); C Ashton (Northampton), M Tindall (Gloucester, capt), S Hape (Bath), M Cueto (Sale); T Flood (Leicester), B Youngs (Leicester); A Sheridan (Sale), D Hartley (Northampton), D Cole (Leicester), L Deacon (Leicester), T Palmer (Stade Francais), T Wood (Northampton), J Haskell (Stade Francais), N Easter (Harlequins). Replacements: S Thompson (Leeds), D Wilson (Bath), S Shaw (Wasps), J Worsley (Wasps), D Care (Harlequins), J Wilkinson (Toulon), M Banahan (Bath).