©PA
England have suffered an injury blow ahead of the Autumn Nations Cup final against France with Mako Vunipola ruled out of the encounter with an Achilles problem.
Vunipola suffered the injury during the previous game against Wales but has failed to make sufficient recovery.
As a result, Ellis Genge has been promoted into the XV to take the place of Vunipola while Joe Marler joins the replacements to provide cover from the bench.
England attack coach Simon Amor expressed disappointment over the news on Vunipola but is backing Genge and Marler to make use of the opportunity.
“Mako picked up an injury in last week’s game,” said Armor.
“We’ve given him every opportunity to recover for this one but unfortunately he hasn’t made it.
“It’s disappointing to lose any player.
“In Ellis Genge and Joe Marler we’ve got two outstanding loose-heads there.
“They’ve trained well this week. Ellis is a real bowling ball in terms of his carries, so he’ll bring that aggression with the ball.
“He’s a very destructive scrummager and he brings a real energy to the team. He’s a great one to bring in.”
