Eddie Jones plans to lure Blues sensation Hoskins Sotutu to England - report

Eddie Jones plans to lure Blues sensation Hoskins Sotutu to England - report

England boss Eddie Jones is reportedly keen to lure Blues' sensation Hoskin Sotutu to England after the highly rated and inform Auckland no.8 revealed that he qualifies for England via his mother.

The son of former Auckland & Fijian back Waisake Sotutu, who was the vice-captain for Fiji at the 1999 World Cup, Hoskins is powerful no.8 that has been one of the form loose forwards in New Zealand in 2020 having surpassed Akira Ioane as the Blues' first choice no.8.

The 21-year-old revealed last week that he qualifies for England through his mother while he is also eligible for Fiji and New Zealand. Although he has been widely tipped for an All Black call up as soon as New Zealand face off against Australia in the Bledisloe Cup later this year, a report by The Telegraph suggests that both Fiji and England are interested in the youngster. 

New Fiji coach Vern Cotter is reportedly hopeful of luring Sotutu but now England have now also come knocking according to the Telegraph.

 

According to the report, he has appeared on the radar of Jones, who is thought to be keen to establish if Sotutu holds any interest in playing for England while he remains uncapped.

The England boss is currently in Japan and has already recruited two players from Super Rugby sides in New Zealand in playmaker Piers Francis, who was born and raised in England, and forward Brad Shields, who qualified for England via his parents.


In order to qualify for England, the youngster would have to commit to a move to the Premiership with a move also requiring a payout from the Premiership club with Sotutu still under contract.

Sotutu represented New Zealand Schools and was a member of Auckland's winning Under-19 side and played for Auckland B before earning a call up to the Auckland Mitre 10 Cup squad for the final game of the season. He was named in the New Zealand u20s squad for the 2018 World Under-20 Championship and following his inclusion in the squad he signed a two-year deal with the Blues for 2019 Super Rugby season onwards.

Hoskins made his debut for the Blues against the Crusaders in Christchurch in Round 15 of the 2019 season but really made his mark on the side in Super Rugby 2020, particularly in the recent Super Rugby Aotearoa games. 



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