England fans have been left scratching their heads after Steve Borthwick named an unusually high number of vice-captains in his latest squad announcement.
The men in white are set to face Japan in the Lipovitan D Challenge Cup, with kick-off at 6.50am BST, live on RugbyPass TV.
For the first ever official Test match between England and Japan on Japanese soil, Jamie George will lead the team as captain.
Chandler Cunningham-South will make his debut start in the back row, while Tom Roebuck is set to earn his first England cap from the bench.
But what really caught fans’ attention was the quartet of vice-captains named alongside Jamie George.
One fan quipped, “Not enough vice-captains for my liking.”
Another puzzled supporter wrote, “Four vice-captains? WTF is this about?”
“Madness. I can’t believe Steve Borthwick has gone with only four vice-captains,” commented a third.
A fourth joked, “4 vice-captains. Very inclusive. Why not just make everyone a vice-captain?”
Another fan pointed out, “That 23 is made up of 21.7% of captains and vice-captains, which is even more ridiculous than the Six Nations’ 17%.”
Borthwick said:
“We’re looking forward to the challenge of playing Japan at their National Stadium.
“Conditions in Tokyo mean we’ll need to be accurate, keep our discipline, and maintain a level of intensity in our performance from the first whistle to the last.
“We will need to be at our very best against an opponent who will want to play fast.”
England team to play Japan:
15. George Furbank
14. Immanuel Feyi-Waboso
13. Henry Slade – vice-captain
12. Ollie Lawrence
11. Tommy Freeman
10. Marcus Smith
9. Alex Mitchell
1. Bevan Rodd
2. Jamie George – captain
3. Dan Cole
4. Maro Itoje – vice-captain
5. George Martin
6. Chandler Cunningham-South
7. Sam Underhill
8. Ben Earl – vice-captain
Replacements
16. Theo Dan
17. Joe Marler – vice-captain
18. Will Stuart
19, Charlie Ewels
20. Tom Curry
21. Harry Randall
22. Fin Smith
23. Tom Roebuck
England Stars Partners:
Below, you will find a list of the players’ partners, along with additional information about each of them:
#1. Beth Dolling (Marcus Smith)
Beth Dolling, whose Instagram handle is @bethdolling, is presently romantically involved with Marcus Smith, the fly-half for Harlequins.
Their relationship began in 2019, but the details of their initial encounter remain undisclosed. Beth is not only a model but also a singer, having participated in various campaigns for renowned brands like PrettyLittleThing, Missy Empire, and Rebellious.
She is affiliated with M Models in Manchester and Body London, showcasing glimpses of her fashion shoots on her Instagram story.
With 34,000 followers on Instagram, Beth keeps her fans engaged with her captivating content.
