I'm a huge fan of Sinfield as club captain at Leeds, and I don't think anyone could underestimate his achievements at Leeds.

However, for me, he isn't 'first name on the teamsheet' in the same way that Ellis, Burgess, Roby, Graham are. Or at least he doesn't appear that way. For me, the England captain has to be a cast iron selection, and unfortunately I don;t think Sinny is. I'd be happy for him to just be a leader on the pitch.

He has started the last 3 and I think played the full 80. Long term he probably isn't the England captin but in this tournament appears to be getting regulary selected and for this years 4 nations I would select sinny.

This is probably his most consistent period of selection though. This is what I mean. For me the captain has to be a cast iron selection. 3 games in a row isn't enough.

Starting every test this year is consistent for me. He has started and played in every test this year. There is only a maximum of 2 games left if we make the final. I agree long term he won't be the England captin but he seems to be picked regulary this year and I don't see any reason for this not to continue. In THIS tournament I would have sinny if JP can't play. Long term re roby Ellis etc then yes but this year I can't see any reason not to give it to sinny

Or sometimes with geographic titles (Lord Salisbury etc). So if he captained England to a 4 Nations win, he could be Lord Leeds. Nice ring to it.

Being a captain isn't just about being the first name on team sheet, its about being a leader, being inspirational, being a fantastic communicator and being someone the players can turn to on & off the field. The fact Sinfield has done this at Leeds for so long is testimony to how good he is at it. It's very rare you'll hear any Leeds player (past or present) bad mouth Sinny or question his leadership. I honestly think the reason he - up to now - has struggled at test level is down to being asked to play out of position so often. In McNamara it seems we finally have an England coach who appreciates Sinfield needs to be at 6 or 13, not 7 or 9.

Personally I'd swap things around next week, regardless of the injury situation

1 Tomkins
2 Hall
3 Reed
4 Ablett
5 Briscoe
6 Widdop
7 Chase
8 Graham/Morley
9 Roby
10 Carvell
11 Ellis/JJB
12 Westwood
13 Sinfield (c)

14 McGuire
15 Morley/JJB
16 Bailey
17 Heighington

I'd rather see Sinfield and Roby share the hooking role. I admire Sinfield immensely for what he's achieved with us but I don't ever see him excelling against either the roos or the kiwis at 6. And I reckon Roby's pace would be much more effective if he was used intermittently.

Its not about being the first player on the team sheet, but there is no point having a captain who isn't playing most minutes of most games. McNamara clearly sees a place for Sinfield. Pervious coaches have seen him as a bit part player, 6 some games, 13 others, 9 often. Sometimes not even in the squad. If McNamara has Sinfield as a long temr member of the squad and sees him as a key part of what England do, then I would be in favour of him being captain. If he's only in there because there's no-one better then there's no point.

If we need a new England captain, then we should look at a long term solution. Someone who has been picked game after game, year after year. Ellis, Graham and Roby fit the bill for me, though Ellis at 30 may be a little old for Long Term.

I appreciate what you mean, but in terms of getting us through the NZ game, then hopefully the 4 nations final I think Sinfield is the obvious choice. A decision on who will lead us into the World Cup can be made nearer the time. The job is still JP's at the moment though, until he says otherwise!!!

If Peacock is out then Sinfield should be given the job on the basis that the role is second nature to him, he's integral to this current team and appears Imperturbable.

The question of who leads the team after this tournament is irrelevant for now.

Agree 100%.
Also IF changes are to be made then at the very least Chase should be benched for Mags to start at 7 imo.
I would also rule out Ellis ,Graham AND JP if they aren't 100% because this is gonna be a fierce match imo and we can't afford to carry forwards at anything less than 95%.

Agree totally this is the point I was trying to make earlier

Where does this leave us if they are in the 95-99% bracket? And how will we measure their percentage fitness?

At this time of year I doubt you'll find a fully fit forward anywhere. If the doctor says they can play, then pick them.

If they have a 50/50 chance then it's a gamble i wouldn't take.
I mentioned 95% because i know they aren't "fully fit" without bumps and niggles this time of year.
Any kind of injury that's gonna be a gamble really isn't worth taking imo no matter who the player is because as we've seen many times in the past it back-fires and we are up sh## creek without a paddle.

We fill our team with forriners & pick a ginner as captain. No wonder RL is going down the pan etc.