The latest England hopefuls for Summer tour of Argentina & USA includes uncapped Bath star
04/15/2025 11:14 AM
There are more than just British & Irish Lions going on tour this Summer, and these four England hopefuls all put their names forward for a Test match call-up in the coming months. Steve Borthwick will be without his Lions stars for when his side travels out across the Atlantic, for a cross-continental tour of the Americas against Argentina and the United States.
For this article, we have reviewed the latest weekend of action across the Investec Champions Cup and EPCR Challenge Cup as the two European competitions progressed through the quarter-final stage. In the same fettle that we selected the stand-out Lions hopefuls from the past weekend of action, we’ll now do the same for those gunning for a spot in the upcoming battles against Los Pumas and the Eagles.
Also, an honourable mention is Henry Pollock, as Northampton’s favourite son has garnered an avalanche worth of momentum throughout his inspired performances in green, black and gold. However, we have just discussed the most talked about 20-year-old in rugby as a potential Lions bolter, whom Andy Farrell could bring on the upcoming trip to Australia.
1. Alfie Barbeary (Bath Rugby)
Bath bruiser Alfie Barbeary had a brilliant weekend of battering his way through West Country defenses. The back row bagged a brace of tries as Bath dispatched Gloucester out of the EPCR Challenge Cup, with the Cherry and Whites making it no further than the quarter final stage after reaching last year’s final. Bath will take on Edinburgh in the semi-final, with another Player of the Match shift from Bearbeary set to elevate his stock in the eyes of Steve Borthwick.
A graduate of the Wasps academy, Barbeary was swept up from the uncharted waters of free agency shortly after the Coventry club collapsed in 2022. The back rower was making quite the name for himself, before an ankle syndesmosis injury and a hamstring tear sidelined him for the majority of the 2022/23 season. The eight-man has been battling back to prominence in the eyes of the England selectors, with some key appearances under his belt for England A over the past few months.
England’s back row ranks are expected to be depleted by the Lions tour, with the likes of Ben Earl and the Curry twins all hoping to get a spot on the plane to Australia. The vacancies could well open up the door for Barbeary to step up, and we back the Bath man with a 60-70% chance of heading to Argentina. Barbeary faces tough competition with Tom Willis excelling at number eight, but the blue, black and white battering ram could get his long awaited senior debut off the bench against Los Pumas or the USA.
2. Jake Morris (Gloucester Rugby)
Switching from one side of the West County derby to the other, and whilst there was little for Gloucester fans to cheer in their visit to the Rec, one stand-out talent for the away side was wing Jake Morris. The uncapped flyer is the definition of a bolter, with a fearless approach to tackle the most experienced Premiership stalwarts, and a desire to express his abilities on the international stage.
The 24-year-old has been on the books at Kingsholm as far back as the 2018/19 season, when he made his debut in the Premiership Rugby Cup against Wasps. Morris has been earning his Cherry and White stripes throughout loan spells with Hartpury in the Tier 2 Championship, and has been a reoccurring face for Gloucester’s impressive recent ventures into Europe.
Morris crossed over for a try against Bath, having also scored in Gloucester’s EPCR Challenge Cup opener against RC Vannes earlier this season. With nearly 50 Gloucester caps under his belt (46 at current time) Jake is looking to follow in his father’s footsteps, as his dad Simon Morris is a Gloucester centurion across the back-line. Morris has continued to lift his status from academy graduate, to Championship loanee and on to Kingsholm mainstay.
The young wing would love to add England debutant to his list of accolades before the end of the Summer, and we back Morris with a 30-40% chance of making the tour. Steve Borthwick’s first choice wings are expected to be absent for the trip, with Tommy Freeman on Lions duties and Immanuel Feyi-Waboso set to continue his recovery with a shoulder injury. Northampton’s Ollie Sleightholme, Harlequins’ Cadan Murley and Sale’s Tom Roebuck are Morris’ biggest competitors for a spot on the plane for Argentina this Summer.
3. Curtis Langdon (Northampton Saints)
Turning our attention now to the latest round of the Investec Champions Cup, and Northampton Saints ran out an attacking clinic at the expense of Castres Olimpique. The French side were handed a rather emphatic 51-16 defeat at Franklin’s Gardens, with Curtis Langdon getting involved on the try-scoring action for the lads in green, black and gold.
The Northampton Saints hooker has been an impressive addition to the Gardens, since he arrived from Montpellier ahead of the 2023/24 season. Langdon’s brief stint in the South of France followed the financial collapse of Worcester Warriors, and his run in the Top 14 certainly diversified his arsenal as an all-rounder ‘modern day’ hooker. Langdon has a proven skill-set to excel at both the close quarters of a tightly contested scrum, and showcase his exciting attrition around the park with ball in hand.
Langdon is built like a tank and has a Ferrarri’s engine, with his pace showcased as he chased down George Furbank’s grubber kick to get over the whitewash for the Saints second try this past Saturday. Langdon has been on the cusp of a solid England run for the best part of a year, as after his two England caps under Eddie Jones in the Summer of 2021, he drifted away and across the channel, as his club career took a be-line via France.
Former England captain Jamie George is expected to be called up for the Lions this Summer, with the Saracen leaving a major vacancy in Borthwick’s plans. Luke Cowan-Dickie and Theo Dan have both enjoyed recent runs within England’s front row, yet Borthwick could roll the dice and put a new man in the two jersey this Summer. We back Langdon with an 80% chance of getting on the tour, and a 50% chance of earning his first England start since the 2021 Test against the United States.
4. Ted Hill (Bath)
We swing back from the East Midlands and across to the West Country, with our third entry on this list from the Challenge Cup clash between Bath and Gloucester. Ted Hill was at his very best in the win for the blue, black and whites, with a super-human work rate befitting of his moniker as England’s resident Superman.
England captain Maro Itoje quipped how Hill resembled the glasses wearing Clark Kent off the pitch, and turns into the ‘Man of Steel’ when he crosses the whitewash upon Bath and England duties. Hill rose to the occasion once again, as he bagged a try in the one-sided beat down of Gloucester, and bossed his side around the park with a real leader’s contribution.
After making two caps for England from 2019 to 2021, Hill’s Test match career had a real resurgence in the tail end of the 2025 Guinness Men’s Six Nations. The Bath man was called into the England camp after an injury to George Martin thinned out the back row ranks, with Hill working his way up the Pennyhill pecking order to earn a place on the match day 23 to face Scotland at the Allianz.
Whilst Hill’s minute long cameo was not that memorable, he followed this up with an eleven minute effort against Italy the following week, before he lost his place on the bench to Henry Pollock for the final round trip to Cardiff. An England start for Hill is long overdue, with the back-row battering ram expected to be on his way to Argentina with odds of 80%. Steve Borthwick could well unleash the Bath man from the get-go, with an 80-minute run out able to showcase Hill’s strengths, to carry his England run into the Autumn.
EDITORS PICKS:
- "George Furbank's return" – Northampton 51-16 Castres – Saints Player Ratings from Champions Cup quarter-final
- Son of England legend ditches dad's nation to play for Six Nations rivals
- England flanker Henry Pollock kicks off huge brawl, three players get yellow carded
- Owen Farrell 'Fortunate' to Escape Red as Lions Hopes Hang in the Balance
- Statement: Newcastle Falcons boss handed HUGE BAN for referee comments
WIN A TRIP TO THE 2025 LIONS:
THE PACKAGE INCLUDES
- 2 x Return flight tickets from the UK to Australia
- 2 x Tickets to watch the 2nd Test in Melbourne
- 2 x Tickets to watch the 3rd Test in Sydney
- 4 x Night's accommodation in Melbourne with bed & breakfast (24-27 July)
- 7 x Night's accommodation in Sydney with bed & breakfast (28 July-3 Aug)
- 2 x Flight tickets Melbourne to Sydney including airport hotel group transfers
- 2 x Tickets to watch a private function with Lions legends
- Additional events to be announced
The winner will be part of the Lions supporters group with tour representatives on hand to oversee everything.
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