Rugby Union: Andrew to step aside for prodigy
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Your support makes all the difference.JONNY WILKINSON'S reputation precedes him by such a distance that it is difficult to locate the player himself without the aid of a telescope, but Newcastle's teenage prodigy is expected to appear in full view in the Sanyo Cup at Twickenham today.
The newly crowned Premiership champions are preparing to give the 18- year-old midfielder a first senior start at outside-half, the position he seems destined to fill for England during this summer's southern hemisphere tour.
Wilkinson has spent all season understudying Rob Andrew, the Falcons' director of rugby, although he progressed sufficiently to force a place at centre during the latter stages of the title run-in. Yesterday, however, Andrew hinted that he would step aside for at least some of the match against Philippe Sella's World XV.
It should ensure a flicker of genuine interest in what has been dismissed as a meaningless and unnecessary addition to the longest domestic campaign in the history of English rugby. Neither Leicester nor Wasps managed to prevail against their scratch opponents in the previous two matches, probably because they were in the advanced stages of exhaustion. Resilient as they may be, Newcastle may well find their task equally thankless this afternoon.
The most serious business of the day takes place 100 or so miles to the west, where Bristol attempt to protect their top-flight status from the hungry wannabes of London Scottish. The Exiles won last Sunday's first leg 29-25 and might easily have done better still; certainly, John Steele, their coach, fancies his side's chances of a repeat performance.
"We played much the better rugby on Sunday and while the slate has been wiped clean for this game, we'll be looking to play at pace and put a number of scores past them once more,' he said.
Iain McAusland, the Australian Under-21 international, replaces Derrick Lee at full-back. Lee was sent off for punching in the opening encounter and, ironicially, is now in Australia with the Scottish Test party. Bristol, meanwhile, may discipline their unsettled England tourist, the utility back Josh Lewsey, for declaring himself unavailable for play-off duty. Lewsey cited pressure of exams, but his club consider him in breach of contract.
The Wasps lock Simon Shaw is the latest player to pull out of England's tour to Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.
Shaw, who has had to withdraw on medical grounds, is replaced by Gloucester's uncapped lock Dave Sims. England now have 19 uncapped players in their 37-man squad.
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