England manager Martin Johnson has called up London Irish back row Steffon Armitage to his elite player squad. Armitage, the brother of Test full-back Delon, has been promoted from the second-string Saxons following the broken ankle suffered by Lewis Moody.
Johnson said “Steffon has been in very good form for London Irish this season and deserves his opportunity.”
There has been an increasingly vocal lobby for the 23-year-old’s first Test inclusion this season after a string of fine performances for the Exiles.
However, he appeared a long shot to feature in the RBS 6 Nations, which begin in less than a fortnight, until Leicester flanker Moody broke his ankle on Thursday — an injury that could rule the 30-year-old out for up to three months.
As well as Armitage, Johnson has also summoned Bath captain Michael Lipman to the elite squad’s warm-weather training camp in Portugal.
He is scheduled to fly out this evening and will then be assessed by England’s medics after being knocked out in yesterday’s Heineken Cup clash with Toulouse.
