Thursday Round-Up
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Thursday Round-Up
England set to announce squad: Sam Burgess is expected to be included in England's 31-man squad for the World Cup, which starts next month. Rugby league convert Burgess only made his union debut for Bath in November and won his first England cap against France in August. The 26-year-old's inclusion means there may be no place for fellow centre Luther Burrell, a regular during the past two Six Nations campaigns. Head coach Stuart Lancaster will name his squad at 13:45 BST on Thursday. Exeter's Henry Slade, 22, is set to be named as one of the four centres alongside Burgess. Sale fly-half Danny Cipriani also looks set to misses out on selection, despite an impressive performance off the bench in the 25-20 defeat by France in Paris on Sunday. England also have close calls to make at prop and in the second row.
Anscombe being monitored: Wales say that fly-half Gareth Anscombe is "continuing to be assessed" after he suffered an ankle injury in training. The New Zealand-born Cardiff Blues No.10 is among the contenders to make Wales head coach Warren Gatland's final 31-man World Cup squad when it is announced next Monday. The severity, or otherwise, of Anscombe's injury is not known. A Welsh Rugby Union spokesman said: "Gareth did pick up an ankle injury in training last week, and he is continuing to be assessed at the moment."
