England confirm replacement for suspended Charlie Ewels ahead of All Blacks series

Nick Isiekwe has been called up by England in place of the suspended Charlie Ewels.

England have called up Saracens second-row Nick Isiekwe as a replacement for the suspended Charlie Ewels ahead of their two-Test series against the All Blacks.

Isiekwe will arrive in Auckland on Tuesday, June 25 ahead of the Red Rose’s opening fixture, which will take place at Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin on Saturday, July 6.

The 26-year-old forward is no stranger to the England camp having been in and out of the squad since making his Test debut under former head coach Eddie Jones in 2017.

Ewels suspended

Isiekwe will replace the suspended Ewels, who on Sunday received a two-match ban, and joins Alex Coles, Maro Itoje and George Martin as England’s second-row options.

Ewels was red carded in Saturday’s win over Japan and has subsequently attended a hearing before an independent Disciplinary Committee for a dangerous ruck charge.

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Charlie Ewels has been suspended for two games for this dangerous clear out on Michael Leitch. 🟥

He will miss both the Test matches against the All Blacks and has been replaced in the England squad by Nick Isiekwe. #NLZvEng  pic.twitter.com/VR4Mi9Mkxy

— Jared Wright (@jaredwright17) June 23, 2024

The Disciplinary Committee was chaired by Shao-ing Wang (Singapore), who was joined by former international players David Croft (Australia) and John Langford (Australia).

According to a statement, the Bath Rugby and England second-row accepted that foul play had occurred but the lock maintained that the offence did not warrant a red card.

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“Having considered all the available evidence, the submissions by the player and his representative, and all available camera angles, the independent Committee determined that the red card was warranted,” it read.

“The Committee considered the degree appropriate entry point for the offending and decided that the offence warranted a low-end entry point of two matches. Having considered submissions as regards mitigation, the Committee did not apply mitigation to the sanction resulting in a final sanction of two matches.

“The player has the right of appeal within 48 hours of the issuing of the full written decision, which will be published here in due course.”

Ewels will therefore miss the two internationals against the All Blacks, with the second match seeing the two teams clash at Eden Park in Auckland on Saturday, July 13.

England head into the upcoming series on the back of a solid 52-17 win over the Brave Blossoms in Tokyo as they look to shock Scott Robertson’s team on New Zealand soil.