Itoje's England tour future uncertain as Borthwick waits on Premiership play-off fitness news

England head coach Steve Borthwick will hold off naming his final tour squad until after the Premiership play-offs, with Maro Itoje’s involvement in the July Tests against South Africa, Fiji and Argentina still unresolved. The England captain was left out of a 26-man training group preparing for a non-cap international against France, with head of performance Phil Morrow confirming the decision was made to allow Itoje to rest at home with his family.

Itoje has endured one of the most demanding 12-month stretches of any player in the game. The 31-year-old captained the British and Irish Lions to a series victory over Australia, featured throughout England’s autumn and Six Nations campaigns, and has accumulated more Test minutes than any other player since his debut in 2016. He also mourned the death of his mother during that period.

“If you take Maro’s last 12 months, he has been captain of the Lions tour, there has been his personal life and the general fact that he plays a decent amount of rugby,” Morrow said at England’s Surrey base. “We always treat players on an individual basis, so this week in particular we thought it was best that Maro stayed at home, spent some time with his family and just rested and recuperated.”

Before any call is made on Itoje, Borthwick will monitor the fitness of fellow locks Alex Coles, Ollie Chessum, George Martin and Charlie Ewels through the Premiership semi-finals and the Allianz Stadium final. Should injury strike in the engine room, plans for the tour opener against South Africa in Johannesburg on July 4 could be revised.

Morrow also used the occasion to raise the broader question of player welfare, suggesting England’s leading internationals could benefit from the kind of structured sabbaticals the All Blacks have offered players such as Dan Carter, Ardie Savea and Scott Barrett — periods of rest or short-term overseas contracts that allow them to return refreshed.

“In principle it would be great for someone to take six months off and get their body right,” Morrow said. “But who pays for the sabbatical? That’s always the challenge when it comes to the payment structure.” He acknowledged the northern hemisphere’s more complex contractual landscape makes a direct equivalent of the New Zealand model difficult to implement.

Morrow confirmed Borthwick will name his final squad once the two remaining weeks of the Premiership season have played out, with individual player welfare — not just short-term availability — central to the selection thinking.