Eddie Jones has named eight uncapped players in his England squad to face the Barbarians at Twickenham on Sunday, while Chris Robshaw and George Ford have been named as co-captains.
The experienced heads of Danny Care, Jonny May and Mike Brown all start, while relative newcomers Ellis Genge and Charlie Ewels are given another chance to impress Jones.
The game is an uncapped match, but it will be a first chance to pull on the England senior shirt for Nathan Earle, Sam Jones and Alex Lozowski in the backs, while Jack Singleton, Will Collier, Nick Isiekwe, Sam Underhill and Josh Beaumont get their opportunity in the forwards.
Jones is excited to see what his new charges can do against the Barbarians, and stressed the importance of sharing responsibility with so many new faces in the side.
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“I’m excited about this squad playing the Barbarians on Sunday,” he said. “The players have trained really well with intensity over the last few weeks and now we need to put that onto the field this weekend.
“While we have some really experienced players starting the game there is a great opportunity for some of the younger players to show what they are about against a Barbarians team full of quality international players.
“We will be treating this game as a Test match and expecting the Barbarians to start the game quickly. This match will be crucial preparation ahead of our two-Test series against Argentina next month.
“I’ve decided to have co-captains this weekend with Chris Robshaw and George Ford. We need the responsibility of leadership shared. Chris will look after the forwards and defence while George will look after the backs and attack.
“It splits the responsibility nicely and with so many younger players there we need co-captains rather than just one guy responsible for everything.”
