Tom Curry suffers World Cup setback with England flanker in protective boot

England coaching staff are "hopeful" the Sale flanker will be fit for at least one of the World Cup warm-up matches

England are confident that Tom Curry will overcome an injury setback that could keep the back-rower out for weeks of their World Cup preparation.

Steve Borthwick, the England head coach, revealed on Thursday that Curry had twisted his left ankle and could be sidelined for as much as a fortnight. Since then, the 25-year-old has been seen in a protective boot at Pennyhill Park.

However, England are confident that Curry will feature in at least one of their World Cup warm-up matches despite the injury.

Speaking on Friday before the squad travelled to Cardiff to face Wales, defence coach Kevin Sinfield suggested that Curry would not be rushed back into action.

“We’re very hopeful,” said Sinfield when asked about Curry’s prospects of featuring in one of the three remaining warm-up fixtures against Wales, Ireland and Fiji. “We don’t think it will take long, but we’ll be smart with him as well.”

Curry missed the entirety of Borthwick’s maiden Six Nations campaign, earning a return to the squad mid-way through the tournament but suffering a hamstring tear in training. Because of that, he is yet to feature under the new England head coach.

Despite this latest setback, though, and amid fierce competition for back-row places, Curry would appear in a strong position to be named in the 33-man World Cup squad that will be named on Monday.

Sinfield reiterated Borthwick’s message that the England squad is close to being decided with only a few spaces still up for grabs before this weekend’s meeting with Wales.

“First and foremost, it’s a Test match tomorrow,” Sinfield added. “I’m sure some players will have it in the back of their minds. But we want to show how we’ve improved. There are only a handful [of players undecided], there aren’t many.

“You guys clearly won’t know whether the guys we are deliberating over are playing or not playing. It’d be unfair to say [selection] is all on this game, because it’s not. We’ve got to take into account the last eight weeks, how players have performed throughout the season and exactly what we need going forward.

“As I’ve already said, there are some wonderful players who will miss out, sadly, because we can’t take everybody. We’ll try to get to the right place with the right balance within the squad.”