Just been announced - no Rangi Chase!

Injury or scared he will be targeted by Issac Luke and co??

Or dropped? Interesting choice give that McNamara has been planning a Sinfield / Chase halfback pairing for 2 years +.

Hope chase has been dropt for me I do not like the guy and no its not because he is not English you can predict what he is going to do all the time good choice widdop

Well I don't think anyone saw that coming!

No Chase or MM in the team and Widdop back makes me feel a little more positive.

Maybe SM has finally seen sense on RC. Then again why wait till now to do it? GW has hardly played.

Except those of us who were told on Tuesday through contacts that both were in McNamara's bad books and wouldn't be playing in either the semi or final if England make it.

very interesting, id have to assume either injury or McNamara had this switch in mind the whole time!

Big risk to switch half-backs mid comp

Dont understand this at all. Having spent 3 years priming Sinfield and Chase for the halfbacks, he drops one of them for the "biggest game in a generation"

Widdop will be going in completely undercooked, having had just 2 lots of 20 mins since September.

If that is true why didn't you say something earlier in the week?

I think we all prayed for it, and the team will benefit from it. Well done whoever made that call

Tomkins

Hall cudjoe Watkins Charnley

Sinfield Widdop

Hill Roby Graham
Westwood Ferres
Burgess

Burrow Burgess O'Loughlin Mossop/Farrell

Dont understand this at all. Having spent 3 years priming Sinfield and Chase for the halfbacks, he drops one of them for the "biggest game in a generation"

Widdop will be going in completely undercooked, having had just 2 lots of 20 mins since September.

I don't think Chase is the right kind of player for England anyway, Too ball greedy and not enough of a team player. But I'd assumed he would be picked anyway because it was too late to change anything at such a late stage. so as much as it's what I'd imagine a lot of us wanted, it's happened so late now that it will probably only have a detrimental effect.


However I get the impression this is more about something that has happened in the background rather than the form of players otherwise Chase would no doubt still be in.

Sounds interesting; tell us more please!

I fear this could be a huge mistake. Widdop was out June-September and has only played a handful of minutes for England the last few years. The only benefit I can see is that New Zealand will have spent all week studying Rangi Chase in video sessions.

I suppose we might even see Burrow and Widdop together at some point too.

I am not happy that Charnley is still in but we cannot have it all i suppose.