Saracens’ Noah Caluori called up by England for autumn internationals

Noah Caluori, the 19-year-old ­Saracens wing, has been named in England’s autumn internationals squad by Steve Borthwick.

Caluori burst on to the Prem scene by scoring five tries against Sale on 18 October and, as England gear up for a busy November featuring four Tests, Borthwick has called up the uncapped youngster after initially inviting him to a training camp last week. The 36-player squad, including 19 forwards and 17 backs, gathered at Pennyhill Park in Surrey on Sunday night.

Caluori made his second Prem start for Saracens in the defeat by table-topping Northampton on ­Friday. He had a considerably quieter night than the phenomenal display against Sale, and was given a severe defensive test by the Saints’ all-court attacking game.

However, his remarkable aerial ability was in evidence at Franklin’s Gardens and, by turning to Caluori for his autumn squad, Borthwick has ­signalled that he sees potential for him to play at the 2027 Rugby World Cup in Australia. The head coach found no place for Adam Radwan of Leicester, who shone in the Tigers’ win against Sale on Saturday and was chosen in Borthwick’s training squad last week. Radwan’s 23-year-old club colleague Emeka Ilione misses out because of a shoulder injury.

The Sale flanker Tom Curry returns, having had surgery on a wrist ligament problem after the British & Irish Lions tour in the summer, and his scrum-half clubmate Raffi Quirke is also back from injury.

There is good news for the Harlequins forward Chandler ­Cunningham-South, who takes his place in the squad despite a recent ankle ­problem, while Elliot Daly of ­Saracens and Leicester’s George ­Martin and Jack van ­Poortvliet will join the squad to work on injury rehabilitation.

“Our focus is on making the most of the time we have together as we approach what will be a fiercely ­competitive series,” Borthwick said. “Facing Australia in the opening match will be a great test against a team that has been training and playing together for some time and is one of the in-form teams in the world.”

The uncapped Caluori will be pitched into a fierce battle for ­starting spots in the back line: Tommy Freeman scored four tries in Northampton’s win against ­Saracens and, while the 24-year-old may be ­switching to outside-centre, there are several other world-class wing options available to Borthwick.

Immanuel Feyi-Waboso scored his seventh try of the Prem season in Exeter’s victory against Gloucester on Saturday and leads the ­try-scoring charts, with Sale’s Tom Roebuck on five and Henry Arundell of Bath on four.

Feyi-Waboso’s Exeter ­colleague Henry Slade, meanwhile, has scored a league-leading 70 points in five Prem rounds, roaring back into top form at 32. Slade has started the past two matches in the centres alongside Exeter’s new signing Len Ikitau of Australia, and they may now face each other at Twickenham on Saturday.

The fly-half shirt could provide intrigue after George Ford enjoyed an outstanding summer tour with ­Borthwick’s team, playing in two wins against Argentina and one against the USA. Fin Smith, who ­stylishly pulled the strings for Northampton on ­Friday, was on Lions duty in ­Australia and the stock of the 32-year-old Ford rose in his absence.

Tom Willis of Saracens is left out, as expected, after announcing his decision to return to France having established himself as Borthwick’s first-choice No 8. The 20-year-old Henry Pollock, another player who starred for Northampton on Friday, will be an option for the No 8 jersey ­leading into the World Cup.

Australia defeated Japan 19-15 in Tokyo on Saturday to begin their autumn schedule but after the ­forwards Lukhan Salakaia-Loto and Josh Canham were injured, Joe Schmidt said he may be forced to call up reinforcements, with the second row being an area of concern. “With England’s strong pack, it just means that we are light in the second row, and we may need to get some reserves dug out from ­Australia,” the head coach said. “That’s probably our first thought.”

Australia’s visit to Twickenham on Saturday is followed by fixtures for England against Fiji a week later, New Zealand on 15 November, and Argentina on 23 November.

George Ford has staked a claim for the fly-half shirt. Photograph: Bradley Collyer/PA