Hartley hands boss Johnson a timely boost
HOOKER Dylan Hartley gave England manager Martin Johnson some much-needed cheer after declaring himself fit for the autumn Test opener against Australia on Saturday.
The Northampton star has been struggling of late with a hamstring injury but was included in Johnson’s youthful 22-man squad for the Twickenham showdown.
With no fewer than 27 players unavailable through injury, Hartley’s fitness comes as a rare boost to Johnson, who was forced to delay naming his squad yesterday.
“From the coaches’ point of view we want continuity as much as we can get it but there are always going to be changes,” Johnson said.
“Hopefully these injuries are an exceptional period, and by the Six Nations we’ll be in the 90 per cent region of who we can pick from.”
World Cup-winning hooker Steve Thompson is also in the 22, with 10 members of Johnson’s initial elite squad released to their clubs.
SQUAD: Forwards: D Bell (Bath), S Borthwick (Saracens, capt), J Crane (Leicester), T Croft (Leicester), L Deacon (Leicester), D Hartley (Northampton), J Haskell (Stade Francais), C Lawes (Northampton), L Moody (Leicester), T Payne (Wasps), S Thompson (Brive), D Wilson (Bath). Backs: M Banahan (Bath), D Care (Harlequins), M Cueto (Sale Sharks), A Erinle (Biarritz), S Geraghty (Northampton), A Goode (Brive), D Hipkiss (Leicester), P Hodgson (London Irish), U Monye (Harlequins), J Wilkinson (Toulon).