England have handed tough injury news as Alex Mitchell has been ruled out of the remainder of the Six Nations.
Raffi Quirke has been called up to the squad as scrum half cover.
The Alex Mitchell injury
Steve Borthwick confirmed that Mitchell would be out for the remainder of the tournament.
In an interview with Sky Sports, the Head Coach stated that he had suffered a hamstring injury.
Northampton Saints have confirmed that this assessment came after scans revealed the extent of the injury.
England scrum-half options
Mitchell started the first three games of the Six Nations and was deputised by Ben Spencer for the opening two games. Jack Van Poortvliet was used as a replacement for Mitchell after 23 minutes against Ireland.
Raffi Quirke has been called up to the squad, having also been called up due to injuries during the 2025 tournament. Quirke has been capped twice for England, both coming in the 2021 Autumn internationals. The Sale scrum half has scored two tries and provided one try assist in the Premiership this season, with a 97% pass accuracy. He came off the bench for England A as they hammered an Ireland XV at the beginning of this international window.
Who starts with Alex Mitchell out?
Ben Spencer has taken the starting role while Mitchell has been absent in the past. He started both tests in the summer series in Argentina.
For the final game of the 2025 summer tour against the USA, while Mitchell was on Lions duty, the number nine shirt was given to Jack Van Poortvliet.
Van Poortvliet came on against Ireland and provided a try assist in the time he was on the field. He completed 48 passes in his 56-minute appearance.
Across Spencer’s two sub appearances in the opening two games, he totalled 20 passes in 25 total minutes.
These two will likely fill the two positions in the match day squad for a scrum half. It will be difficult to tell which direction Borthwick will go in for his starter.
