The RFU announced that Owen Farrell, England’s captain, has tested positive for Covid in advance of Saturday’s match at Twickenham against Tonga.
After Marcus Smith of Harlequins was not deemed fit enough to play on the bench, the Saracens star was chosen to start at fly-half for Eddie Jones’ side.
England had to delay the announcement of their team against Tonga for the autumn opener after a Covid scare.

England captain Owen Farrell tested positive for Covid before Saturday’s Tonga clash
A member of support staff performed a lateral flow test, which returned a positive result. They were placed in isolation at the Red Rose base, Surrey.
Further testing was performed on all members of the squad and their staff. All lateral flow tests were negative. England was still waiting for the results from their latest PCR tests.
RFU has stressed that all COVID protocols have been followed.

The Saracens star was chosen to start at No. 10 for Eddie Jones’ Twickenham side on Saturday
Saturday’s fixture – the first of three Tests this month – is meant to be taking place in front of a capacity crowd of 82,000 at Twickenham.
It will be the first full house at national stadium since March 2013.
All spectators at the game must present proof of being fully vaccinated or a negative test result.
More to come.