CHRIS FOY: Rightly or wrongly, Stuart Lancaster will be judged on the success or failure of two high-profile selection decisions – the inclusion of Sam Burgess and omission of Danny Cipriani. England’s head coach has managed to avoid intense scrutiny in relation to his squad choices up until now, by spreading the net wide with an initial group of 50 players. In fact, the biggest focus to date has been on the removal of Manu Tuilagi and Dylan Hartley from the World Cup equation on disciplinary grounds. On both counts, Lancaster cannot be faulted. He had no choice. However, in hindsight, doubts must be cast on the original inclusion of so many players. It may have made more sense to start with a smaller squad, to ensure intense preparation work with men genuinely in the mix to feature at the home tournament. ...read

CHRIS FOY'S WORLD OF RUGBY: Christian Wade may soon come to the understandable conclusion that his best shot at international glory will be in Rio next year, rather than in London this year. The Wasps wing has had the clearest indication yet that his Test prospects appear remote, on the basis that he is simply too small – in the minds of the England coaches, anyway.  His omission from the 50-man World Cup training squad was the most notable non-selection and a desperate shame. ...read