Maro Itoje replaces Jamie George as England captain ahead of Six Nations 2025 | Rugby Union News
Maro Itoje has replaced Jamie George as England captain ahead of the upcoming Six Nations campaign.
As Steve Borthwick revealed the 36-man training squad for his side’s first game away to Ireland on February 1 on Tuesday, the head coach dropped the bombshell that Itoje will replace fellow Saracens striker George as captain.
The 30-year-old, who was also named Saracens captain last August, becomes the 136th player to hold the position permanently, with George retaining a leadership role as one of two co-captains alongside Ellis Genge.
“With 88 caps for England, Maro has been a central figure in this team for many years, bringing a huge amount of experience on and off the pitch,” said Borthwick.
“He is a calm, influential leader, known for his commitment to maintaining high standards and his ability to motivate those around him.
“His strong relationship with the team and coaches, combined with his leadership experience at Saracens, makes him ideally suited to take on this responsibility.
“I would like to acknowledge the outstanding leadership of Jamie George, whose contribution as captain has been significant and he will continue to play an important role as vice-captain.”
Itoje added: “I am incredibly humbled and honored to be asked by Steve to captain England. It is truly an incredible privilege for me and my family, and I feel grateful to have been given this opportunity.
“With the role comes a lot of responsibility, but I’m at a point in my career where I feel ready to give my all to serve the team and the fans as captain, while also giving my all on the pitch.
“It is encouraging to know that there is a group of senior players supporting me and helping to build on the achievements of Jamie, who led the team brilliantly and was a great friend and leader for so many years.
“I am excited about the squad of players we have, who are all hungry for success, and I look forward to leading them for the upcoming Six Nations.”
Borthwick calls on the capless Harlequins duo
Borthwick has named uncapped Harlequins duo Oscar Beard and Cadan Murley in the group to work with at Pennyhill Park and also in Girona in Spain ahead of his side’s campaign.
England are without Immanuel Feyi-Waboso and George Furbank, who continue their injury rehabilitation with the national medical team.
Alex Mitchell is expected to return from injury, with Harry Randall and Jack van Poortvliet selected as other options at half-time.
England lost five Tests in a row – including a two-Test tour of New Zealand last summer and an autumn international against the All Blacks as well as Australia and South Africa – before returning to winning ways in the latest run against Japan.
More to come…
England team training
Forward
Fin Baxter (Harlequins, 6 caps)
Ollie Chessum (Leicester Tigers, 23 appearances)
Alex Coles (Northampton Saints, 7 appearances)
Luke Cowan-Dickie (Sale Sharks, 44 appearances)
Chandler Cunningham-South (Harlequins, 11 games)
Ben Curry (Sale Sharks, 6 appearances)
Tom Curry (Sale Sharks, 56 appearances)
Theo Dan (Saracens, 16 games)
Alex Dombrandt (Harlequins, 20 games)
Ben Earl (Saracens, 37 games)
Ellis Genge (Bristol Bears, 66 games) – vice-captain
Jamie George (Saracens, 97 games) – vice-captain
Joe Heyes (Leicester Tigers, 7 games)
Ted Hill (Bath Rugby, 2 appearances)
Maro Itoje (Saracens, 88 games) – captain
George Martin (Leicester Tigers, 19 games)
Asher Opoku-Fordjour (Sale Sharks, 1 cover)
Bevan Rodd (Sale Sharks, 7 appearances)
Will Stuart (Bath Rugby, 45 games)
Tom Willis (Saracens, 1 cover)
Back
Oscar Beard (Harlequin, no cap)
Elliot Daly (Saracens, 69 games)
Fraser Dingwall (Northampton Saints, 2 appearances)
George Ford (Sale Sharks, 98 appearances)
Tommy Freeman (Northampton Saints, 15 games)
Ollie Lawrence (Bath Rugby, 31 games)
Alex Mitchell (Northampton Saints, 18 games)
Cadan Murley (Harlequins, capless)
Harry Randall (Bristol Bears, 11 games)
Tom Roebuck (Sale Sharks, 3 appearances)
Henry Slade (Exeter Chiefs, 69 games)
Ollie Sleightholme (Northampton Saints, 5 appearances)
Fin Smith (Northampton Saints, 6 appearances)
Marcus Smith (Harlequins, 39 appearances)
Freddie Steward (Leicester Tigers, 35 games)
Jack van Poortvliet (Leicester Tigers, 16 games)
Six Nations 2025 fixtures: England
- February 1: Ireland (a)
- February 8: France (h)
- February 22: Scotland (h)
- March 9: Italy (h)
- March 15: Wales (a)
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