7 Oct 2011

Wilkinson and Flood included in England side for quarterfinal

7:00 am on 7 October 2011

Jonny Wilkinson and Toby Flood have both been included in the England backline for Saturday's rugby World Cup quarter-final against France.

Wilkinson will start at first five and his rival Flood, will play at second-five in place of the injured Mike Tindall.

The headline-prone midfielder is the notable omission but manager Martin Johnson says Tindall suffered a leg injury in England's final pool match against Scotland and while he may have been fit to play he hasn't trained properly all week.

Johnson says it isn't a gamble to play Flood outside Jonny Wilkinson - his main rival for the number 10 jersey - and it's the best team available.

Winger Mark Cueto, who scored a hat-trick in his last outing against Romania, returns to the left wing in place of Delon Armitage, who was banned for one match for a dangerous tackle on Scotland's Chris Paterson.

Johnson has added number eight Nick Easter and lock Tom Palmer to the starting XV, relegating James Haskell and Courtney Lawes to the bench with three other forwards and two backs, while winger Mark Cueto replaces the suspended Delon Armitage.