Six Nations: Eddie Jones could make surprise calls ahead of England squad announcement

Stuart Lancaster spent the best part of four years seeking clarity on who might best represent England at their home World Cup, but could barely see his hand in front of his face when it really mattered. Eddie Jones has not been in the job two months, yet he already has answers to the questions that bamboozled his predecessor. Sadly, the new boss is not yet in a position to act on his conclusions.

Henry Slade, the Exeter midfielder, would have been among the first names on the 33-man Six Nations squad list due to be announced today – and would almost certainly have filled the problem position of inside centre on Calcutta Cup day in Edinburgh next month – had he not suffered the double whammy of a busted leg and a dislocated ankle before Christmas. Jones sees his absence as a bitter blow, with good reason.

As for the equally exasperating open-side flanker position…well, how does the name Sam Underhill sound? The overview on Underhill from those Twickenham types charged with unearthing what Jones would call a “proper No 7” is that the 19-year-old Gloucester academy product and recent England age-group captain is made of the right stuff: the World Cup-winning back-rower Richard Hill, who performed the breakaway role in two Lions Test series and therefore knows of what he speaks, is genuinely excited by his potential. And Hill has never been one for public displays of enthusiasm, hence the nickname “Victor Meldrew”.

But the youngster is studying in Cardiff, has linked up with the Ospreys and can count his appearances in top-grade professional rugby on the fingers of two hands with digits to spare. Even if Jones wanted to pick him now, he would probably fall foul of the controversial “England places for England-based players” policy. This explains why Wales are wondering whether they might be able to pinch him on residency grounds.

Talking of Hills and their derivatives, another Exeter midfielder, the uncapped Sam Hill, and the Northampton tight-head prop Paul Hill are increasingly being talked of as leading lights in the new firmament. The former is currently struggling with injury, but the latter is as fit as a flea and showed it by stampeding 40 metres for a startling try in the East Midlands derby with Leicester at Welford Road last weekend. The fact that the score was cruelly disallowed for foul play in the build-up is neither here nor there. The signs are that Jones is thinking long and hard about fast-tracking the 20-year-old now that Kieran Brookes has mangled his knee ligaments.

Among the other untried and untested candidates, the much-discussed Saracens lock Maro Itoje has made a cast-iron case. Some would argue that Elliot Daly, the thunder-booted outside centre from Wasps, and Josh Beaumont, the in-form No 8 from Sale, have done something similar over the last three months. Daly’s chances may depend on whether Jones believes Manu Tuilagi, the human bowling ball, is worth a roll after one club appearance off the bench in 14 months, while Beaumont’s immediate future is wrapped up in the enigma known as Ben Morgan, the Gloucester forward who can play like a world-beater one day and struggle to beat an egg the next.

For all the hullabaloo surrounding Jones’ return to these shores after more than a six-year absence – he left Saracens for Japan in the spring of 2009 – many of the defeated and demoralised World Cup group are likely to be retained. With a dozen contenders off-limits for orthopaedic reasons and a degree of concern over the Exeter wing Jack Nowell’s knee problems and the Wasps lock Joe Launchbury’s concussion, only the bravest or foolhardiest of selectors would embrace change simply for change’s sake.

Indeed, some of those tipped for promotion have not long been demoted. Few people doubt that the combustible Northampton hooker Dylan Hartley will be drafted back in after missing the global gathering for disciplinary reasons, and some other well-known absentees, from the wings Marland Yarde and Chris Ashton to the strong-running centre Luther Burrell and the celebrity outside-half Danny Cipriani, have legitimate cause for hope.

As for the captaincy, there is plenty to be said for Jones sticking rather than twisting: Chris Robshaw, the Harlequins flanker who shouldered the burden throughout Lancaster’s tenure, is far more likely to retain his place in the side now that he has abandoned the breakaway role in favour of the blind-side duties, and the odds on him being the first man out of the Murrayfield tunnel on 6 February have shortened as a result.

Meanwhile, former England coach Andy Farrell has joined Pro12 side Munster as a temporary advisor until he joins Joe Schmidt’s Ireland set-up as defence coach after the Six Nations.