Durham County players announced in England Counties squad ahead of Romania Tour

Durham County players announced in England Counties squad ahead of Romania Tour

Durham County and Mowden Park triplet announced in the England Counties squad to tour to Romania.

England Counties Team Manager, Matt Long has confirmed a squad of 29 players to travel to Romania for the team’s three match tour.

The first game will see the side kick off with a warm up game on June, 1 against CSM Bucharest, followed by fixtures against Romania U23s and Romania A on June 5 and 8.

The three players that will make their debuts for England are; Ollie Hodgson, Warren Seals and Grant Connon.

The announcement comes ahead of the Bill Beaumont County Championship Division Two final at Twickenham on Sunday.

Throughout Durham’s Championship campaign, the Darlington Mown Park players have all made their impact to the sides success with three appearances from Hodgson, two from Connon and one from Seals with a total of five tries and thirteen conversions between them.

The players selected in the squad, represent a range of clubs and counties from across the country. As well as their fixtures, England Counties will be undertaking outreach work in Bucharest to help grow the game in Romania.

“We’re incredibly excited about the opportunity to tour Romania,” said Long.

“Representing your country is an unforgettable experience and for many of the players involved on the tour it will be the pinnacle of their rugby careers.

‘’Following up on a previous visit by England Counties in 2015, we are expecting a series of physical games which will test the new England Counties squad’’

England Counties will be hoping to continue their success from their last tour in Spain, having finished it unbeaten.

Other players that make up the squad feature from Counties including; Cornwall, East Midlands, Gloucestershire, Hertfordshire, Kent, Lancashire, Leicestershire, North Midlands, Surrey and Yorkshire.

Durham County RFU wishes England Counties the Mowden lads the best of luck whilst on tour.

By Clarissa Murphy