Selection headaches mounting at wrong time for Lancaster

Competition for places is, normally, an excellent problem (if such a thing exists) for an international head coach to have.

It pushes players to new levels, knowing they can’t rest on their laurels with someone snapping at their heels to take their place.

A year out from a World Cup, however, it is not the ideal scenario for Stuart Lancaster and his England squad.

He finds himself in a situation where the players who make up combinations he has worked so hard to gel over the past couple of years are coming under real pressure for their places from younger, or less experienced, guys who ha…