By Paddy Von Behr

ENGLAND captain Chris Robshaw insists Gloucester No.8 and former Dursley player Ben Morgan can still have a part to play at the 2015 Rugby World Cup, despite missing the second half of this season with a broken leg.

The 26-year-old starred for the Red Rose in the autumn, scoring off the bench against South Africa before crossing the whitewash twice in England’s 26-17 win over the Wallabies.

That was Morgan’s last appearance in the famous white jersey however, as having fractured his leg against Saracens in January he missed England’s entire Six Nations campaign, not to mention Gloucester’s run to European Challenge Cup glory.

But with Morgan on the mend and ahead of schedule to return in time for England’s World Cup training camp and warm-up matches, Robshaw is excited to see the Cherry & Whites star return to challenge Billy Vunipola for the No.8 shirt.

“Hopefully he will be back,” he said. “I think Ben is making quite a speedy recovery and I am sure he will be back in the mix.

“We are in a very lucky position where we do have some competition at the moment. When you have that strength in depth and you don’t mind who is playing, that’s a good position to be in.

“All the guys have played extremely well when they have been given their opportunity, and Ben is a great example of that.

“He was patient, he waited and when he came in during the autumn he did extremely well. Unfortunately he hurt his leg but hopefully he will be back.”

Despite missing out on the Six Nations title to Ireland on points difference in Morgan’s absence, it was still an encouraging tournament for the Red Rose, although Gloucester’s Jonny May and Billy Twelvetrees struggled to hold down a regular place in the side.

Stuart Lancaster’s men racked up a stunning 157 points in five games – the highest of any of the teams – and with that in mind, 28-year-old Robshaw believes the entire squad is well placed for taking on the world’s best.

“I can’t wait, it is very exciting. We are almost into camp now and once we are there it will be extremely intense and extremely challenging but it’s a place you want to be,” he added.
“It is something we have been looking forward to for a long time and it has been spoken about for a long time.

“We are progressing and we have done a lot recently. You look at the way our attack has taken shape in the last Six Nations campaign and I think that was the biggest thing we really had to add to our boat.

“I’m really looking forward to it, when everyone is back fit as well. People say to be successful in the World Cup you have to have a squad.

“It’s not so much about the XV, it’s about the 30 there and – if injuries happen – the other guys coming in from the training squad who are really going to push on and excel.”

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