Opoku-Fordjour Included in England’s 36-Player Squad

Asher Opoku-Fordjour joined Sale Sharks after his previous club Wasps was disbanded. England has selected the Sale Sharks prop for its 36-player squad, which is preparing to compete against Australia in the Autumn Nations Series. The 20-year-old was a member of England’s Under-20s team that secured victory in their age-grade World Cup earlier this year. Opoku-Fordjour steps in for Joe Marler, who has declared his retirement from international rugby. Concurrently, Bath lock Charlie Ewels takes the place of his club colleague, Ted Hill. Marler, a 34-year-old Harlequins prop, concluded his England career having earned 95 caps. Head coach Steve Borthwick had previously indicated a need for greater depth in the prop position for his team. England commenced their autumn fixtures with a close 24-22 loss to New Zealand at Allianz Stadium on Saturday. The team will continue their campaign against the Wallabies on 9 November. Lock Maro Itoje commented that the host nation is nearing a significant victory following a series of tight defeats. England has suffered three successive Test losses against the All Blacks, despite holding a lead in the final quarter of each match. “We will get there,” stated Saracens lock Itoje. “We have to lick our wounds and take our medicine at the moment, but this team is building in a positive direction.” “I have been part of a few teams and you get a sense of when a team is moving in the right direction.” “I think we are growing in the right areas of the game, we are aggressive in attack and there is a general feel of confidence and vibe among the players.” “We have had some agonising losses, but this is a different team to what it was 18 months ago with the way we play, the endeavour we show.” “Sometimes in the past when we lost, they were clear losses and we were clutching at straws. I don’t feel we are clutching at straws now. We lost, but we’re close.”