England to make Andrew Sheridan replacement decision

Injury forced Sheridan out (GETTY IMAGES)

England will make a final decision today on who to call up as a replacement for the injured prop Andrew Sheridan.

The Sale loosehead was ruled out of the tournament after damaging his shoulder in the opening 13-6 win against Argentina.

The England management delayed their decision on a replacement until after they had assessed the collateral damage from yesterday's hard-fought 41-10 victory over Georgia.

Prop Matt Stevens limped off with an ankle problem and Chris Ashton hurt his elbow in scoring his second try.

If Martin Johnson wants a like-for-like replacement for Sheridan, Gloucester's Paul Doran-Jones and Wasps prop Tim Payne are the leading candidates having been members of the original 45-man training squad.

But under tournament regulations, Johnson does not have to select a prop.

England may well decide to reinforce their midfield, with Riki Flutey a likely candidate, or strengthen their back row resources with a player like Chris Robshaw or Joe Worsley.

"The plan really was to wait and see what the damage was out of this game to see where we need the extra man," attack coach Brian Smith said.

"The decision needs to be made by the close of play today."