England name team to tackle Scotland: Ben Youngs benched and Joe Marler dropped as Eddie Jones makes five changes
Youngs drops to the bench, Heinz starts at scrum-half
Vunipola returns at prop, Kruis partners Itoje in second row
Six Nations 2020 table: latest standings from this year's tournament
The inside story of rugby's most notorious Calcutta Cup match
Lewis Ludlam turns up the heat: 'They hate us and we hate them'
Rory Sutherland: 'I had to teach my body to walk and run again'
England have performed major surgery to the team defeated by France by making five changes for Saturday's Calcutta Cup clash with Scotland.
Ben Youngs is the biggest-name casualty after the veteran Leicester scrum-half was demoted to the bench for the Six Nations second-round fixture, making way for Willi Heinz.
Also gone is loosehead prop Joe Marler, who is jettisoned from the 23 completely and loses his place in the starting XV to Mako Vunipola, with Ellis Genge deputising among the replacements.
Replacements: T Dunn, E Genge, W Stuart, J Launchbury, C Lawes, B Earl, B Youngs, O Devoto
Courtney Lawes has been relieved of his blindside flanker duties in a move that elevates Lewis Ludlam into the back row, but Tom Curry is retained at No 8 for a second match.
The second row sees George Kruis come in for Charlie Ewels, the Bath lock who has also paid the price for a below-par opening to the Championship in Paris.
Jonathan Joseph's selection at outside centre is an enforced change after Manu Tuilagi was ruled out of the trip to Edinburgh by a groin strain that should see him return against Ireland two weeks later.
George Furbank endured an error-strewn Test debut at the Stade de France but he survives at full-back and is present as part of an unchanged back three.
There is no Luke Cowan-Dickie on the bench due to his wife going into labour, so Tom Dunn could make his debut as a replacement, as could uncapped Saracens flanker Ben Earl.
Eddie Jones has opted for a six-two split of forwards and backs on the bench, pointing to a game plan of overpowering Scotland up front.
Magnus Bradbury has returned to the Scotland line-up.
The Edinburgh flanker, who scored in last year's thrilling 11-try Calcutta Cup draw at Twickenham, sat out the Scots' Six Nations opener with Ireland in Dublin due to a thigh strain.
Replacements: S McInally, A Dell, S Berghan, B Toolis, N Haining, G Horne, R Hutchinson, C Harris
His recall to Gregor Townsend's team in place of club-mate Nick Haining is the only change to the XV which went down 19-12 at the Aviva Stadium.
Haining drops back to the bench, taking Cornell Du Preez's place, while prop Simon Berghan also comes into the replacements for WP Nel.
Time to have your say >>>>>
That's a wrap, I'll be heading into the comments section below to reply to a few of your messages. Are we all happy with this England line-up?
Jones is sending a message out to his players
The England team to tackle Scotland in Edinburgh has been announced. Here, our Chief Rugby Union Correspondent, Gavin Mairs, gives his take on Eddie's selections...
This is decisive action from Eddie Jones, a swift and wide-ranging response to the performance in Paris. Changing one third of his side ahead of the trip Murrayfield sends a message out to his squad. The level of performance in the defeat by France was not good enough. After the carrot of the World Cup, comes the stick in the Six Nations.
It is clear where Jones thinks the game will be won and lost, and using a bench of six forwards, including the uncapped Tom Dunne and Ben Earl, during the second half, he will hope that it will be a decisive power play. Scotland though will have other ideas.
To read Gavin's full analysis, click here
'We want to make sure we dominate the gain line'
Here's Eddie Jones talking about the Scotland game:
"Preparation this week has been great. We have sought to address the issues from the France game and have had a really good and sharp preparation for Scotland.
"Scotland are a dangerous side. They like to play with a lot of width and with a lot of flow and tempo in their game. We want to make sure we dominate the gain line.
"Their win record against England at Murrayfield is substantially higher than their overall record against us, so we have to recognise they are a dangerous beast and we have to be at our best to beat them."
BREAKING NEWS: Youngs dropped
England have dropped scrum-half Ben Youngs as one of five changes made to the starting XV for Saturday's Six Nations match against Scotland.
England team to play Scotland
G Furbank (Northampton Saints); J May (Leicester Tigers), J Joseph (Bath Rugby), O Farrell (Saracens, capt), E Daly (Saracens); G Ford (Leicester Tigers), W Heinz (Gloucester Rugby); M Vunipola (Saracens), J George (Saracens), K Sinckler (Harlequins), M Itoje (Saracens), G Kruis (Saracens), L Ludlam (Northampton Saints), S Underhill (Bath Rugby), T Curry (Sale Sharks).
Replacements: T Dunn (Bath Rugby), E Genge (Leicester Tigers), W Stuart (Bath Rugby), J Launchbury (Wasps), C Lawes (Northampton Saints), B Earl (Saracens), B Youngs (Leicester Tigers), O Devoto (Exeter Chiefs).
Thirty years since The Grudge: The Inside Story
Not long before the England line-up is announced so while we count down the minutes a quick plug for an absolutely brilliant piece of work by Mick Cleary and Richard Bath.
Not matter your age, or whether you witnessed it or not, most rugby fans will have heard of the 1990 Calcutta Cup clash at Murrayfield and David Sole's 'slow walk' out onto the pitch.
Mick and Richard have tracked down three key figures from each side to talk about their memories of that emotional day... and it is fascinating!
Here is a brief extract...
Halliday: We knew it would be hostile up there. Why wouldn’t it be with Maggie’s poll tax and all that? Will (Carling) was a figure of hate and that was fairly normal too.
Moore: Had I been Scottish I’d have been furious myself to be used as a government guinea pig. I’m not surprised they were up in arms. No wonder it had a galvanising effect. It was certainly a factor for them.
Hastings: People talk about the politics, but if there was a bitterness and spice to the game a lot of that came from the 1988 game at Murrayfield. That was the night the Calcutta Cup got wrecked, and in the match Dean Richards shut up shop, strangled the game to death and England won 9-6. It was why we were so determined to put pace on the game in 1990.
To read the full article, click here
Where did it all go wrong in Paris?
That is the big question. Fortunately, we have Charlie Morgan to answer it. Charlie had produced a forensic analysis of where it all fell down against France. You can read the full, extended article here.
Or click on the embed below for a bite-size version >>>
'No harm in England losing after bull****** Jones comments'
You've got to love Keith Wood, the former Ireland hooker. Terrific player and now superb pundit.
And he didn't hold back when asked about England losing to France following Eddie Jones' warning to Les Bleus to expect 'absolute brutality', and got it handed to them instead.
Wood told Off The Ball:
"I loved it because it was a joy to watch. And it was a joy on many levels because there's no harm in England losing after the bull****** comments of Eddie Jones.
"I always think things like that [Jones' comments] are a factor because they're a factor for the opposition who stick it up on the wall. People say that they don't need to, well don't say it so because you have it.
"It's also the level of brutality that he was talking about, like what sort of pressure is that on his players? He wants to have great players and he started talking about it when the player that he relies upon - Billy Vunipola - wasn't playing.
"England are a very different team when Vunipola isn't in the side. I thought his selection was poor picking Curry at 8 and I thought he got schooled in the match."
What are the latest standings?
May closes in on England try-scoring history
Jonny May's two tries against France last weekend saw him move into the top five on the all-time England list.
Having overtaken Jason Robinson to go fifth in terms of England try scorers, May will continue to soar up the table if he maintains his form over the course of the championship.
1. Rory Underwood - 49 tries
2= Will Greenwood - 31 tries
2= Ben Cohen - 31 tries
4. Jeremy Guscott - 30 tries
5. Jonny May - 29 tries
6. Jason Robinson - 28 tries
So, what do we think we know?
Anthony Watson will definitely be out for a second-successive Six Nations match after suffering a setback in his recovery from a calf problem.
The England wing has been stood down following an aborted return to training on Tuesday, pointing to the retention of George Furbank at full-back.
Watson suffered the injury on Champions Cup duty for Bath last month and - while he was pencilled in to start the 24-17 defeat by France that opened the Championship - he was forced to withdraw on the eve of the team announcement in Paris.
Losing Watson is a blow given England's back three has an unsettled look.
Furbank struggled on his international debut at the Stade de France, making a string of conspicuous errors, and would almost certainly have made way for Watson had his calf issue not resurfaced.
Elliot Daly had been first choice full-back since July 2018 but Eddie Jones sees his future on the left wing and - along with several of his Saracens team-mates on parade - he endured a quiet afternoon in Paris.
There will be one enforced change made to the starting XV for Murrayfield when the team is named on today with Jonathan Joseph likely to deputise for groin-injury victim Manu Tuilagi.
England will probably persist with the experiment of playing flanker Tom Curry at No 8 in the absence of Billy Vunipola, who will miss the entire tournament because of a broken arm.
Curry was a world player-of-the-year nominee for 2019 due to a string of outstanding performances, including at the World Cup, but he made little impact against France.
Charlie Ewels has the paid the price for England's below-par performance in Paris after being omitted from the 25-man squad that will continue preparations for the Scotland clash.
Ewels was a starter against France but has been jettisoned completely with Joe Launchbury, who has recovered from a knee injury, taking his place.
No extra three-quarter cover has been called-up for Tuilagi, so wing Ollie Thorley will make his Test debut at Murrayfield, either as a starter or replacement.
Saracens flanker Ben Earl is included but is unlikely to be involved.
'We are going to get stuck into them'
Good morning and welcome to our England team announcement live blog. Who will Eddie Jones pick to take on the auld enemy?
Whoever gets the final nod, we know we are in for a blood-and-thunder clash at Murrayfield on Saturday.
Lewis Ludlam has already stirred the pot in promising the Scots a "war" fuelled by hatred.
And the young Northampton flanker bristles at the perception that Celtic nations play with more passion than England and has placed Scotland on alert for what is coming at them.
"I disagree actually. We are emotionally there. They hate us and we hate them. There is no difference.
"It's just another place to go. It's a battle. It's going to be a war and it's something we're excited for and we'll be ready for.
"We are going out to get stuck into them and they are going to do the same to us. I don't think there is any difference in the passion between the two sides.
"Whenever you pull on the shirt, it is a proud moment, it is a passionate experience. They won't be any more revved up than we are for it."
