Danny Cipriani given first England start for a decade as Eddie Jones bids to avert series whitewash
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Loading... - Tristan Lahm
- 21 Jun 2021
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Danny Cipriani was today recalled to England’s starting line-up - 10 years after he last wore the No.10 jersey, writes Alex Spink in Cape Town.
A decade on from playing in the team handed a record 42-6 home defeat by South Africa at Twickenham, Cipriani gets another chance against the same opposition.
It is a triumph of perseverance for the 30-year-old, who appeared to have been written off by countless coaches - including Eddie Jones.
But he refused to give up on his dream, added a more selfless streak to his extravagant playing ability, and has been rewarded with the playmaking role in Saturday’s third Test.
Jones said: “We are expecting a wet and windy old day at Newlands and have elected to play Danny Cipriani ahead of George Ford to give us a left-foot kicking option.
“We will need to jump out of the blocks quickly again and make sure we maintain that pressure and make good decisions.”
The series is already lost but try telling Gloucester-bound Cipriani that this is an unimportant occasion.
Jones makes three changes in all to the starting XV beaten in Bloemfontein with Joe Marler replacing Mako Vunipola, who returned home this week for the birth of his first child.
And a week after being dropped from the squad, Chris Robshaw replaces an ill Brad Shields at blindside flanker.
“We’ve had a really upbeat training week,” Jones added. “We are up for the battle and are going to rip in on Saturday. We want another committed performance where it will be crucial to maintain our composure when the heat is on.
“I’ve been really impressed with the fortitude of the squad under Owen Farrell, who is a young captain, and with a number of young players who have really stuck to the task."
ENGLAND
15 Elliot Daly (Wasps, 20 caps)
14 Jonny May (Leicester Tigers, 36 caps)
13 Henry Slade (Exeter Chiefs, 12 caps)
12 Owen Farrell (Saracens, 60 caps) captain
11 Mike Brown (Harlequins, 71 caps)
10 Danny Cipriani (Wasps, 15 caps)
9 Ben Youngs (Leicester Tigers, 76 caps)
1 Joe Marler (Harlequins, 58 caps)
2 Jamie George (Saracens, 27 caps)
3 Kyle Sinckler (Harlequins, 12 caps)
4 Joe Launchbury (Wasps, 53 caps)
5 Maro Itoje (Saracens, 21 caps)
6 Chris Robshaw (Harlequins, 65 caps)
7 Tom Curry (Sale Sharks, 3 cap)
8 Nathan Hughes (Wasps, 16 caps)
Bench
16 Luke Cowan-Dickie (Exeter Chiefs, 7 caps)
17 Alec Hepburn (Exeter Chiefs, 2 caps)
18 Harry Williams (Exeter Chiefs, 10 caps)
19 Jonny Hill (Exeter Chiefs, 0 caps)
20 Mark Wilson (Newcastle Falcons, 3 caps)
21 Sam Simmonds (Exeter Chiefs, 7 caps)
22 Ben Spencer (Saracens, 2 cap)
23 Denny Solomona (Sale Sharks, 4 caps)
