England rugby have been dealt a huge blow ahead of the Women’s Six Nations with centre Tatyana Heard ruled out of the tournament.
The World Cup winner has been John Mitchell’s first-choice inside centre throughout his tenure and started the final against Canada at Twickenham in September.
Heard has suffered a foot injury, though, that will sideline her for the entirety of the Six Nations campaign and leaves the Red Roses relatively short of proven options in midfield.
Veteran Emily Scarratt retired after the World Cup and is now part of Mitchell’s coaching team, while Heard’s club-mate Jade Shekells is currently out of action.
Uncapped Loughborough Lightning midfielder Carmella Morrall has joined the squad and could vie with fellow potential debutant Sarah Parry for a place alongside captain Meg Jones.
Fly halves Helena Rowland and Holly Aitchison are also capable in either the No 12 or No 13 shirts, while Mitchell has floated the possibility of experimenting with full-back Emma Sing in the centres.
“We’d like to see how Emma Sing goes in the midfield over the next few years,” the England head coach explained. “I think it is important for her to develop another position because she is a very strong carrier of the ball.
“Whether we look at that in this tournament is another thing, but it’s certainly in our minds. Emma could play 12 or 13. It’s something that Emma is also pretty keen on developing, and it allows her to contribute to the group and add another string to her bow.”
England open their campaign against Ireland at Twickenham’s Allianz Stadium on Saturday 11 April. More than 70,000 tickets have been sold for the game.
