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Courtney Lawes to make first appearance in over 2 months

By Ian Cameron

09 Dec 2022

Courtney Lawes of England speaks to the referee during game three of the International Test match series between the Australia Wallabies and England at the Sydney Cricket Ground on July 16, 2022 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Jason McCawley - RFU/The RFU Collection via Getty Images)

Northampton Saints have named Courtney Lawes on the bench as they take on European champions La Rochelle this weekend in a Heineken Champions Cup opener on the west coast of France.

Lawes has not played since September 24 and didn’t feature for England having failed return-to-play protocols after a concussive injury at the start of the season. Owen Farrell captained the men in white in his absence.

Lawes saw a specialist during the layoff and is now deemed well enough to resume playing and is set to be sprung from the bench at Stade Marcel-Deflandre.

In total Saints director of rugby Phil Dowson makes five changes to his starting line-up, with Robbie Smith, David Ribbans, Aaron Hinkley, Tom James and Matt Proctor all returning to the side.

Smith is one of four Northampton players set to make their Heineken Champions Cup debuts as he starts at hooker, with Alex Waller and Paul Hill packing down either side of the 24-year-old in the front row.

Lukhan Salakaia-Loto – also set for his European debut – makes his sixth consecutive start as he joins Ribbans in Saints’ engine room for only the second time this season.

Captain Lewis Ludlam shifts to No. 8 this weekend to lead the side out in La Rochelle, accompanying incoming Hinkley and England international Alex Coles in the back row.

James makes his third start of the season at scrum-half as he partners another Champions Cup debutant Fin Smith in the half-back berths, with Fraser Dingwall and Proctor lining up outside them in the centres.

NORTHAMPTON SAINTS
15 George Furbank
14 James Ramm
13 Matt Proctor
12 Fraser Dingwall
11 Tommy Freeman
10 Fin Smith
9 Tom James
1 Alex Waller
2 Robbie Smith
3 Paul Hill
4 Lukhan Salakaia-Loto
5 David Ribbans
6 Alex Coles
7 Aaron Hinkley
8 Lewis Ludlam (c)

REPLACEMENTS:
16 Sam Matavesi
17 Emmanuel Iyogun
18 Ehren Painter
19 Courtney Lawes
20 Angus Scott-Young
21 Juarno Augustus
22 Alex Mitchell
23 Rory Hutchinson

Heineken Champions Cup, Round 1
Date: Saturday 10 December 2022
Stadium: Stade Marcel-Deflandre
Kick-off: 6.30pm (local time)

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Comments on RugbyPass

Bull Shark 11 minutes ago

Sadness pervades as Gatland stands on the brink of Welsh exit

Not true. I'm a South African and I absolutely loved seeing the Wallabies beating England. And miss the Wallabies of old who were a devastating force with some of the greatest players of all time.

I hear quite regularly that Australians prefer Aussie rules, league, and cricket over rugby.

So again, seems like Australians are to blame for the state of the game in Australia?

16 Go to comments

Bull Shark 19 minutes ago

Let's be real about these All Blacks

I find Ben Smith to be an emotionally driven hysteric. So I question everything he writes.

He launched into the year about the ABs being back this year. For a "journalist" his opinions are based on the flavour of the month.

He's at least gone quiet about how sh1t the boks actually are. Although I suspect he's working on an outrageous article to that effect as we speak, to drive engagement after the end of the Autumn series, as we'll all be taking a break until the 6N.

22 Go to comments

Chesterfield 21 minutes ago

Michael Hooper reacts to Scott Barrett’s controversial late-game call

The dominant pack should be enforcing their superiority with maximum points and the psychological advantage of taking the lead.

You don’t get that by saying we’ll settle for three and try again you get it by scoring seven and trying again. Doesn’t come off every time?

No.

But if you’ve asserted dominance letting the opposition off and not trying to build a double score difference is wrong minded.

All blacks have traditionally played to build the unassailable lead not meekly win a single point victory.

11 Go to comments

Arnold 24 minutes ago

Let's be real about these All Blacks

Aaah. Ben Smith. Ever the unbiased, objective rugby scribe......NOT.

Unable to give credit where it's due, other than for the ABs, especially when it comes to the Boks. His contempt for them is tangible. If you want to " Get Real" about these ABs Ben, consider when they last beat the Boks??? For us Bok fans, beating the ABs is the only true measure.

22 Go to comments

Reader76 43 minutes ago

Let's be real about these All Blacks

"they [All Blacks] are nuggety and resourceful and don’t wilt. They are prepared to win the hard way, accumulating points by any means necessary."

Sounds like you're describing your arch-nemesis Ben 😁

22 Go to comments

CM 46 minutes ago

'Steve Borthwick hung his troops out to dry - he should take some blame'

This article only shows a part of SBs failings as England Coach. Firstly his reputation st Leicester was false, his SA and Welsh players won the matches not his coaching prowess. He has Wigglesworth as attack coach, someone who rarely attacked when playing. His player selection is awful, ignoring form players and sticking with failed internationals. He picks players that he knows and will be easy to manage for him. What on earth is Slade doing when even for Exeter he does not make line breaks with steppping, pace or guile, why on earth are Cole,George,Steward,Ford,Iseweke and a few other anywhere near the Team. Borthwick is awful as Head Coach of England.

1 Go to comments

Mzilikazi 47 minutes ago

Key Wallabies trio running hot a year after being left in cold

Good to be writing about a WB team that has beaten two 6 N sides in successive weeks, Brett.

Lolesio indeed is looking very comfortable under Schmidt coaching. He must feel as confident now as he was feeling in his spell at Toulon last year. It will be interesting to see how he does against Finn Russell.

30 Go to comments

J Marc 1 hour ago

'Passionate reunion of France and New Zealand shows Fabien Galthie is wrong to rest his stars'

Your unterstanding of the relation FFR LNR, is far better than the one in the article. For Meafou, there is an article on Skelton saying he is totally indispensable in the australian game.

In France they are often compared, and french game is often, but not always ,based on this kind of number 5. But , there are a lot of kind of play in France and in the world, and it's a blessing, because otherwise, the game would be boring.

On my other post ,which you replied, my intention was to explain with some historics facts the main importance, in France, of the championship.

But ,once again, I would prefer 3 games in NZ , with the better french players.

287 Go to comments

Ninjin 1 hour ago

Let's be real about these All Blacks

I said before the November tests that the AB's should go smash some Nh teams to find their feet and it seems that is just what they did bar France. Could have should have always sucks. Better to look to the future.

22 Go to comments