Ben Spencer, captain of Bath Rugby, has been called up to the England squad for their upcoming match against Argentina this Saturday in the final international of the Nations Championship summer series.
Spencer replaces Northampton Saints' Alex Mitchell on the bench after Mitchell suffered an injury during England’s dominant 73-8 victory over Fiji. Despite the recent addition of Newcastle-bound Rafi Quirke to the England camp by head coach Steve Borthwick, Spencer has secured his spot, highlighting his value to the team.
England’s starting XV remains unchanged for the clash in Santiago del Estero. Spencer is one of two changes among the replacements, joined by uncapped loosehead prop Emmanuel Iyogun. Flanker Guy Pepper is Bath’s other representative in the matchday squad.
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Jamie George will captain England, earning his 113th cap and moving into fourth place on the list of England men’s most-capped players. Ellis Genge and Ollie Chessum will serve as vice-captains.
Head coach Steve Borthwick expressed enthusiasm about the challenge ahead: “We’re excited by the challenge of playing Los Pumas in Santiago del Estero. We expect a fantastic atmosphere with passionate home support. It promises to be a great occasion, and one the players are excited to embrace.”
The fixture details are as follows:
ARGENTINA vs ENGLAND
Saturday 18 July 2026
Estadio Único Madre de Ciudades, Santiago del Estero
Kick-off: 8.10pm BST
England Starting XV:
15. Marcus Smith (Harlequins, 52 caps)
14. Tommy Freeman (Northampton Saints, 29 caps)
13. Henry Slade (Exeter Chiefs, 76 caps)
12. Seb Atkinson (Gloucester Rugby, 6 caps)
11. Immanuel Feyi-Waboso (Exeter Chiefs, 15 caps)
10. Fin Smith (Northampton Saints, 18 caps)
9. Jack van Poortvliet (Leicester Tigers, 26 caps)
- Ellis Genge (Bristol Bears, 82 caps) – vice-captain
- Jamie George (Saracens, 112 caps) – captain
- Joe Heyes (Leicester Tigers, 24 caps)
- Alex Coles (Northampton Saints, 21 caps)
- George Martin (Saracens, 23 caps)
- Ollie Chessum (Leicester Tigers, 37 caps) – vice-captain
- Guy Pepper (Bath Rugby, 14 caps)
- Ben Earl (Saracens, 53 caps)
Replacements:
16. Luke Cowan-Dickie (Sale Sharks, 60 caps)
17. Emmanuel Iyogun (Northampton Saints, uncapped)
18. Asher Opoku-Fordjour (Sale Sharks, 8 caps)
19. Tom Curry (Sale Sharks, 70 caps)
20. Henry Pollock (Northampton Saints, 12 caps)
21. Ben Spencer (Bath Rugby, 18 caps)
22. Benhard Janse van Rensburg (Bristol Bears, 1 cap)
23. Noah Caluori (Saracens, 1 cap)