- Alex Mitchell suffered leg knock playing for Northampton against Munster
- He is set to start for England against Ireland in Dublin on February 1
Alex Mitchell has given England coach Steve Borthwick a big fitness boost with the Northampton scrum-half set to be fit for the start of the Six Nations.
Mitchell has quickly emerged as one of his country’s most important players and he was badly missed during the autumn series when he was out with a neck injury.
When the 27-year-old initially played on for Saints before being eventually substituted with a leg knock against Munster on Saturday, more fears over another spell on the sidelines were raised. However, Mail Sport understands Mitchell is in good health and the problem was nothing serious.
It means he will likely have already been pencilled in to start at No 9 against Ireland in Dublin for England’s opening game on February 1.
While Borthwick will no doubt have breathed a sigh of relief over Mitchell, he still faces an anxious wait on Jamie George.
The hooker, who has lost the England captaincy to Saracens team-mate Maro Itoje, suffered a hamstring problem in action against Castres last weekend.
Northampton scrum-half Alex Mitchell (right) is set to be fir for England’s Six Nations opener
George underwent scans with England on Monday.
Borthwick is expected to issue an update on his former skipper – as well as lock Alex Coles who has had scans on an arm injury – at the Six Nations launch in Rome on Tuesday.
