Picture the scene: as an England training session winds down, less than a fortnight before their autumn series starts with a Twickenham firecracker against Australia, three back-rowers remain on the field, conversing on turnovers, comparing angles of attack and how to get in and out and away.

Two of them are youngsters in Guy Pepper and Emeka Ilione – the other is an older hand in Sam Underhill.

“You get yourself in those positions because you’re beating your man into that position,” Pepper tells The i Paper .

While he is only chatting about jackalling, the words could be just as relevant to the battle for back-row selection.

A changing squad

The subject was given a twist last week when England’s head coach Steve Borthwick reacted to Tom Willis moving from Saracens to French club Bo

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