England A will be managed by Mark Mapletoft for their matches against the All Blacks XV and Spain in November.
Maplefoft, who was appointed Head of England Men’s Player Pathways last month, managed England A the previous year, achieving a 38-17 triumph over Australia A last year at the Stoop.
He will guide the squad again in matches against the All Blacks XV at the Rec on November 8, and against Spain the following week in Valladolid.
James Lightfoot Brown of Gloucester will act as attack coach for the opening match, while Mapletoft will take over for the journey to Spain. Similarly, Matt Ferguson of Harlequins will oversee the scrum for the initial match, and will be succeeded by Nathan Catt for the second, subsequent to leading England Women to Rugby World Cup success.
Adam Powell of Saracens and James Craig of Northampton Saints will be accessible for both matches, with the former directing defence and the latter overseeing the forwards.
Fixture
Rugby Union Hybrid Friendlies
England A
All Blacks XV
The RFU, in collaboration with PREM Rugby, designated the coaching team, with Steve Borthwick and RFU Executive Director of Performance Conor O’Shea to make the selection of the match day 23.
“It’s a great privilege to be joined by some of the most promising coaching talent in the Gallagher PREM ahead of our first games of the 2025/26 season,” remarked Mapletoft.
“Following in-depth discussions with Steve [Borthwick] and Conor [O’Shea] along with PREM Rugby, we are confident that we have put together a team that will propel the A side into a new campaign with innovative concepts against challenging opposition.
“Our goal is to persistently offer an avenue for young players to develop the rose and assess themselves against international-standard sides, connecting the gap into the senior setup.”
England A’s previous game, against Ireland A at Ashton Gate in Bristol in February, proved to be advantageous for Borthwick. Four players from the 28-12 victory over Ireland A would receive their initial England caps during the summer against either Argentina or the United States, Charlie Atkinson, Max Ojomoh, Joe Carpenter and Gabriel Oghre, and the team was mentored by Lee Blackett, who has since departed Bath and has been added to Borthwick’s support staff as attack coach permanently.
