Ollie Lawrence and Elliot Daly have lost their central contracts after being omitted from Steve Borthwick's 25-man England squad, a year before the World Cup campaign is set to begin. Neither player featured in this summer's three Nations Championship matches, though both were prominent during the Six Nations.
Northampton forward Alex Coles and Sale prop Asher Opoku-Fordjour are among the new inclusions. Borthwick has also opted against offering a contract to South African-born centre Benhard Janse van Rensburg, who debuted over the summer, and Courtney Lawes.
In total, Borthwick has made five changes to the group of players who receive approximately £150,000 per season. Seb Atkinson, Guy Pepper, and Jack van Poortvliet join Coles and Opoku-Fordjour in receiving contracts after missing out a year ago. Ben Curry, Tom Roebuck, and Tom Willis are also omitted alongside Lawrence and Daly.
Atkinson's inclusion may explain Lawrence's exclusion, despite the Bath centre's performance in England's autumn victory over the All Blacks last year. Daly's omission is also unexpected, given Borthwick's previous praise for his versatility and his value to the team.