England A national rugby union team

England A is England's men's second national rugby union team. The team has previously been known by a number of names, such as England B, Emerging England and, most recently, England Saxons. England A play a key role in the development of emerging talent, allowing players to gain experience in an international environment and to show that they have the ability to perform at Test level for the England first team. England A were unbeaten for 13 games until losing to Ireland A, now known as Ireland Wolfhounds, in the 2009 Churchill Cup Final on 21 June 2009.

Not to be confused with Anglo-Saxons.

England A
UnionRugby Football Union
Coach(es)England George Skivington
(February 2024)
1st kit
2nd kit
First match
England England XV 29–0  Canada
(30 September 1967)
Largest win
England England A 91–5  Portugal XV
(25 February 2024)
Largest defeat
England England Saxons 0–35  Scotland A
(3 February 2012)

England A was one of three sides that regularly competed in the now-defunct annual Churchill Cup competition, the others being the full national teams of Canada and the United States. Since 2006, they have also played two matches, against Ireland Wolfhounds and Italy A, in parallel with the full Six Nations Championship.

Concept

England's second team was known as England B until 1992, when it was renamed as England A. In 2000, as part of its long-term strategic plan, the RFU re-examined the role of the 'second team' and decided that a change of name was desirable. Several names were considered – e.g. England Aces and England Bloods – before the name England Saxons was chosen from a short-list of possibles. The change of name took effect from mid-May 2006, just before the start of that year's Churchill Cup. They reverted to England A in May 2021.[1]

England A are seen as an integral part of the RFU's development process:[2]

England Saxons is a key part of the development pathway to the senior side...

The future success of rugby in England depends, to a large extent, on the next best 15 players.

England A will give up and coming players a platform to perform in an international environment and to show that they can make the step up when required.

— Andy Robinson (England head coach), 18 May 2006

England A games do not count as full England internationals, regardless of the opposition, as players are not capped. However, the governing body of a lower-tier nation may grant full national caps when its senior side plays the Saxons—for example, USA Rugby awarded official Test caps for the USA team's matches against the Saxons in 2008. If the opposition awards Test caps for a match, it counts fully in Test statistics for the capping nation, though not for England.

Participation in international competition

England A / Saxons participated in the Churchill Cup from its inception in 2003 until its demise following the 2011 edition. Under the final format, they played three games, two at the pool stage and one on finals day. The Saxons also play two matches each season against teams from the other Six Nations countries (France, Scotland, Ireland, Italy and Wales), the games being played on the same weekends as Six Nations Championship matches. Since 2006, the Saxons' opponents in these games have been Ireland Wolfhounds and Scotland A.

Squad

On 15 February 2024, a provisional 27-player England A squad was named for a training camp at Loughborough University, ahead of a friendly fixture against Portugal at Welford Road in Leicester on 25 February 2024.[3]

Note: Players capped at senior international level are listed in bold.
Caps and clubs correct as of: 20 February 2024.

Player Position Date of birth (age) Caps Club/province
Seb Blake Hooker (2001-10-05) 5 October 2001 0 England Gloucester
Jamie Blamire Hooker (1997-12-12) 12 December 1997 6 England Newcastle Falcons
Sam Riley Hooker (2001-04-23) 23 April 2001 0 England Harlequins
Fin Baxter Prop (2002-02-12) 12 February 2002 0 England Harlequins
Tarek Haffar Prop (2001-09-13) 13 September 2001 0 England Northampton Saints
James Harper Prop (2000-10-16) 16 October 2000 0 England Sale Sharks
Josh Iosefa-Scott Prop (1996-07-16) 16 July 1996 0 England Exeter Chiefs
Ben Bamber Lock (2001-01-24) 24 January 2001 0 England Sale Sharks
Arthur Clark Lock (2001-12-19) 19 December 2001 0 England Gloucester
Nick Isiekwe Lock (1998-04-20) 20 April 1998 11 England Saracens
Rus Tuima Lock (2000-05-21) 21 May 2000 0 England Exeter Chiefs
Alfie Barbeary Back row (2000-10-05) 5 October 2000 0 England Bath
Jack Clement Back row (2001-02-27) 27 February 2001 0 England Gloucester
Greg Fisilau Back row (2003-07-09) 9 July 2003 0 England Exeter Chiefs
Tom Pearson Back row (1999-10-26) 26 October 1999 1 England Northampton Saints
Guy Pepper Back row (2003-04-21) 21 April 2003 0 England Newcastle Falcons
Caolan Englefield Scrum-half (1999-11-01) 1 November 1999 0 England Gloucester
Harry Randall Scrum-half (1997-12-18) 18 December 1997 6 England Bristol Bears
Charlie Atkinson Fly-half (2001-10-06) 6 October 2001 0 England Gloucester
Jamie Shillcock Fly-half (1997-08-01) 1 August 1997 0 England Leicester Tigers
Olly Hartley Centre (2002-02-19) 19 February 2002 0 England Saracens
Rekeiti Ma'asi-White Centre (2003-02-03) 3 February 2003 0 England Sale Sharks
Ollie Hassell-Collins Wing (1999-01-17) 17 January 1999 2 England Leicester Tigers
Cadan Murley Wing (1999-07-31) 31 July 1999 0 England Harlequins
Ollie Sleightholme Wing (2000-04-13) 13 April 2000 0 England Northampton Saints
Sam Harris Fullback (2003-09-03) 3 September 2003 0 England Bath
Josh Hodge Fullback (2000-05-23) 23 May 2000 0 England Exeter Chiefs

Call-ups

On 20 February 2024, Charlie Ewels, Joe Heyes, Max Ojomoh and Will Muir were added to the England A squad, following their release from the England senior squad.[4]

Player Position Date of birth (age) Caps Club/province
Charlie Ewels Lock (1995-06-29) 29 June 1995 30 England Bath
Joe Heyes Prop (1999-04-13) 13 April 1999 7 England Leicester Tigers
Max Ojomoh Centre (2000-09-14) 14 September 2000 0 England Bath
Will Muir Wing (1995-10-30) 30 October 1995 0 England Bath

References
  1. "England Saxons revert to England A". BBC Sport. 11 May 2021. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
  2. "England A becomes England Saxons". rfu.com. 18 May 2006. Archived from the original on 27 September 2012.
  3. "England A squad announced for Portugal fixture". www.englandrugby.com. Rugby Football Union. 15 February 2024. Retrieved 15 February 2024.
  4. "England A: Five players added to squad for Portugal fixture". www.premiershiprugby.com. Premiership Rugby. 20 February 2024. Retrieved 20 February 2024.
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