Jeff Probyn: Sam Burgess is different, but does he have the time to deliver
I say 50, but this far out from the World Cup with the Premiership season still to have its final few games and with the possibility of injury in training or warm up games, it could easily be a pick of up to 60 including standbys before the first World Cup game on September 18.
The rivalry for a place in that final squad will be intense. Having been at two World Cups but only playing in one, I must admit that I would have preferred just to have been picked for the one I played in.
The game is different now. If you make the squad you will get on the field and you will get a cap no matter who you play against or for how long.
When the first World Cup took place in 1987 the RFU said they would take part but not award caps to any players as the cup included a number matches against tier two nations and they only gave caps for tier 1 matches.
The rest of the world said they would award caps, so the RFU were forced into a climb down and said they would award caps but despite that, only one new cap was awarded during that tournament which was to John Webb after Marcus Rose was concussed midway through the first game, England v Australia.
For the rest of us uncapped players it was weeks of training, sitting on the bench and hoping for an injury so you could get the chance that John had. A lot of people will question why the coach has taken so many and has still not managed to find a place for two players Steffon Armitage and Nick Abendanon (voted the best in Europe) in his squad.
I have to say his comments that he was doing it for the good of rugby in England, has at last made clear the obligations that are put on the England head coach to help protect the standard of the game within the English Premiership.
Without the safeguard of the non-selection for players playing abroad, it is likely that the stars of the English game would pack their collective bags and play in France or wherever they get paid the most.
It is not the case that the French would want all our players, they would be selective but it is that selection that could undermine the standard of play in the Premiership. If, for example, the best props, hookers or fly-halves or any of the specialist positions were taken, clubs would be forced to buy replacements from around the world.
That would reduce further the opportunities for young players coming through the ranks because unlike now they would not have the opportunity of stepping up to the first team while the stars are away on international duty.
The foreign imports are unlikely to be playing internationals and remain with the club, leaving the young players waiting and hoping for an injury to give them their chance.
In part that is the reason why Lancaster has had to maximise his squad selection because what he thought was his best team has had to be sifted over the past two seasons as a result of injuries to key players. When players of the quality of Cole, Corbisiero, Launchbury, Lawes, Foden, Farrell and Morgan were taken out of the squad by injury and the replacements Wilson, Marler, Kruis, Attwood, Brown, Ford and Vunipola step in and perform, it makes selection pleasantly difficult.
I suppose the interesting selection at this stage is Sam Burgess even though I am still not convinced that he has yet proved himself to be an international Rugby Union player, particularly in the centre where he has been selected.
Burgess has shown remarkable versatility starting in the centre and then moving to the back-row, a position more akin to where he played in Rugby League. Since the switch he has looked far more comfortable which begs the question, why has Lancaster picked Burgess at centre, a position where he has shown far less promise?
The exclusion of Manu Tuilagi as a result of his indiscretions, although commendable, has made a big hole in Lancaster’s plan for his midfield which is still the main bugbear of the England team.
Despite the myriad of options on the wings and even to some extent at full- back, fly-half and scrum-half is not mirrored in the midfield where countless combinations have been tried with some notable if not consistent successes.
Lancaster has found in Jonathan Joseph a perfect foil for Ford at fly-half but still doesn’t know who to partner him with at inside-centre. The hope was that Tuilagi would have provided the physicality of Luther Burrell and consistency of Brad Barritt in one person but now without him as an option, Lancaster is still searching for the right combination to unleash the back three.
Unfortunately none of the established players have stepped up, so Lancaster has been forced to try something different and Burgess is certainly different.
I must admit his inclusion goes against my every instinct because I see it as yet another League player moving to Union and being pushed into the England squad far too soon and expected to perform.
Even so it may be that the versatility Burgess brings could help define England in this World Cup. That’s if, and it is a big if, he can make the transition from good back-row forward to world class centre in the few games England have before the final cut to the World Cup squad of 31.
That would involve Lancaster taking a massive gamble and playing Burgess in all warm up games to give him chance of international match experience and an outside chance to live up to the hype.
