England has named nine uncapped players and recalled the seasoned Natasha “Mo” Hunt to their reshuffled Women’s Six Nations squad. Several members of last year’s World Cup squad have been ruled out by injuries and unavailability, prompting Red Roses head coach Simon Middleton to cast a wider net in his selections.

Among the promising squad newcomers called up to fill the gaps are the 20-year-old Exeter center Nancy McGillivray and the Saracens hooker May Campbell, but plenty of familiar faces remain, with Sarah Hunter and Marlie Packer named co-captains for a campaign that begins on 25 March in Newcastle against Scotland.

Scarratt and Ward will also be engaged in a non-playing capacity, assisting with defense and lineout, respectively, to foster their growth as potential future high-level coaches.

Holly Aitchison of Saracens is expected to don the No. 10 jersey for the Red Roses in Middleton’s final campaign in charge.

Harrison and Helena Rowland will not be available until the latter stages of the competition.

Middleton reiterated that the RFU’s top priority has been to identify the best available candidate, male or female. So speculation that Deacon will be automatically promoted to the top job appears premature.

“It must be the proper person, whatever that looks like,” said Middleton. “I assume they have a list of potential candidates, and I’m certain they’re also searching externally. You don’t want to overlook anything.

Louis might be the greatest person, but he might not be. There may be some well-established, prominent coaches who participate. We’ll see. Deacs is an excellent coach, but he is still a young coach. It’s crucial to allow individuals to hone their skills and not overburden them with additional responsibilities.

England has defeated finalists at the previous two World Cups. But they are aware that they cannot dwell on their agonizing loss to New Zealand at Eden Park in November. The RFU also hopes that this year’s Six Nations tournament will continue to raise the profile of women’s rugby. Thirty-five thousand seats have been sold for the Red Roses’ final match against France on April 29 at Twickenham.