Feyi-Waboso expected to be fit for England after hamstring tweak
Manny Feyi-Waboso tweaked a hamstring while playing for Exeter against Newcastle on Sunday, but initial scans have not shown major damage and Exeter director of rugby Rob Baxter said the 23-year-old should be fit for international duty next month and is on track to feature in England’s opening Nations Championship Test against Australia on 8 November.
Scans of Feyi-Waboso were reviewed by medical staff from both Exeter and England and, although early indications are positive, the wing will be unavailable for his club’s opening Champions Cup pool fixture at Toulouse on Saturday, Baxter said he hoped the player would be back in action before too long.
“He’s had a scan and there’s nothing I’m hearing from our physios saying there should be a long-term issue,” said Baxter. “We’re in a delicate period for both parties,” he said “We’re desperate for Manny to play because we’ve got some important games and England want him to feature in the autumn. “An England physio was in yesterday to assess Manny. There’s always two sides to every injury: what something looks on a scan and how the player is reporting it and moving around. Sometimes they can be very different. “On the basis of the conversations I’ve had with my medics, there may not need to be too much intervention. He’ll have a break this week, but it’s a different conversation if he’s still feeling it next Monday.”
Feyi-Waboso has scored nine tries for England since making his debut in the 2024 Six Nations and has suffered a series of injuries since. He played in last season’s Prem final with a plate in his jaw, scored a try in England’s victory over Argentina in Santiago del Estero in July, and added two tries against Bath this month.
Ellis Genge and Courtney Lawes have urged that the restriction on England selecting overseas-based players be reconsidered, arguing that internationals who have accumulated a specified number of caps should remain available for selection even if they move to clubs in France. Genge captained England as recently as last autumn and remains a regular in the front row, while Lawes, who has 105 caps, has returned from a two-year spell in the Top 14 and is back on Borthwick’s radar for the Nations Championship.
“I know in Wales they do the 25-cap thing,” Lawes told The Good, The Bad and The Rugby podcast. “It’s not a terrible idea because then you can keep your young players if they want to be part of the England team and once they’ve cut their teeth and earned their stripes, you’ve got the opportunity to go elsewhere and still play for your country. I think that might not be a terrible compromise.”
Genge said he had discussed the rule with RFU chief executive Bill Sweeney but remained unconvinced of its necessity, adding he did not think players should be barred from moving abroad. “I don’t think it’s fair to say: ‘You aren’t allowed to do it’,” he said. “It’s a sick experience and the stuff that comes with it is incredible as well. If you look at football, Jude Bellingham going over to the other leagues – look how much better he got – and Harry Kane, the captain of the country now playing in Germany. Experience of different leagues brings out the best in players. “I don’t think you can just put people into a box and say: ‘No, you must do this because we want the product to be better, ultimately’. I sort of agree with what ‘Courts’ [Lawes] has said. If you had a cap rule where you do, say 50 or 60 caps, so if you’re involved in the English international game and you have 60 caps and then you go to France.”
The British & Irish Lions women’s team will play their first match in August next year when they host France at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff on 27 August, before departing for their inaugural tour to New Zealand, which begins on 4 September.
Exeter have confirmed Feyi-Waboso will miss the Champions Cup trip to Toulouse on Saturday, but the club and England medical teams report he remains on course to be available for England’s opening Nations Championship Test against Australia on 8 November.