Reed and Bern start against Ireland

Sarah Bern will line-up at tight-head, whilst Amber Reed retains her place in the centre to partner Emily Scarratt.

England will be aiming to make it three consecutive wins in this year’s competition after victories over France and Scotland as they fight to retain their Grand Slam title.

Head Coach, Simon Middleton, said: “Our strength-in-depth and competition for places has seen us make a few changes.

“Like us, Ireland have performed well and in particular started their two games strongly. They haven’t conceded a point in the opening 20 minutes so the early stages of the game promise to be pretty explosive as both teams battle for the higher ground.

“Our leadership group deserve a lot of credit for the way they’ve kept everyone together and impacted on both on-field and off-field sessions. The influence they have on the team, our preparation and ultimately our performances is growing every week.” 

England squad in full: 

15. Sarah McKenna, 14. Abby Dow, 13. Emily Scarratt, 12. Amber Reed, 11. Jess Breach, 10. Katy Daley-McLean, 9. Leanne Riley; 1. Vickii Cornborough, 2. Lark Davies, 3. Sarah Bern, 4. Poppy Cleall, 5. Zoe Aldcroft, 6. Sarah Beckett, 7. Vicky Fleetwood, 8. Sarah Hunter

Replacements: 16. Amy Cokcayne, 17. Detysha Harper, 18. Shaunagh Brown, 19. Harriet Millar-Mills, 20. Amelia Harper, 21. Natasha Hunt, 22. Zoe Harrison, 23. Emily Scott

FIXTURES:

• Round one: France Women 13-19 Red Roses
• Round two: Scotland Women 0-53 Red Roses
• Round three: Sunday, February 23rd - Red Roses v Ireland Women
• Round four: Saturday, March 7th  - Red Roses v Wales Women 
• Round five: Sunday, March 15th - Italy Women v Red Roses