Dan Cole back at the coal face and digging deep for a World Cup call

Leicester prop is finding life tough after 10 months out following neck surgery but is determined to win back his England place • England blow as neck injury rules out Dan ColeEven the strongest of tighthead props occasionally feel powerless. In Dan Cole’s case the moment arrived in February when a routine weights session at England’s training base in Bagshot brought his professional life to a shuddering halt. “I tried to do a bench press in the gym and basically had no power in my left arm,” he says quietly. Only now, 10 months and a significant neck operation later, is he finally beginning t…