By AAP
October 28th 2009 @ 2:10am
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England recalls Cup heroes to haunt Wallabies
Visions of the 2003 Rugby World Cup final may return to haunt the Wallabies after England recalled Jonny Wilkinson and hooker Steve Thompson to their training squad.
The selection of Cup final hero Wilkinson was widely expected in the 32-man squad preparing to face an Australian team aiming to launch its grand slam quest with victory at Twickenham on Saturday week.
The veteran five eighth, who kicked four penalties and the clinching dropped goal in extra-time to snatch the World Cup from Australia six years ago, has put season after season of injuries behind him since switching to French club Toulon this year.
The recall of the burly Thompson is more remarkable in a squad also containing centre Mike Tindall, lock Ben Kay and loose forward Lewis Moody from that distant triumph in Sydney.
The 31-year-old Thompson made 48 appearances for England – including the 2003 World Cup final – before retiring in 2007 because of a serious neck injury.
He returned later the same year after new medical advice and is still playing in France for Brive.
The Wallabies have four survivors from that heartbreaking 2003 defeat in their tour squad – Stirling Mortlock, George Smith, Matt Dunning and Matt Giteau after Lote Tuqiri (sacked), Al Baxter (dropped), Phil Waugh (injured/dropped) and Nathan Sharpe (injured) fell by the wayside.
Thompson returns for England with manager Martin Johnson, the 2003 World Cup-winning skipper, facing an injury crisis after losing almost a full team of possible starters including his British and Irish Lions front row of Phil Vickery, Lee Mears and Andrew Sheridan along with backup prop Julian White.
Johnson also recalled veteran prop Duncan Bell four years after his second and last international appearance as his squad prepares for next month’s home Tests against the Wallabies then Argentina and the All Blacks.
Thompson and Bell join Tim Payne and David Wilson, the only props remaining from Johnson’s original senior elite squad.
Bath prop David Barnes is one of the three uncapped players, along with lock Richard Blaze and Courtney Lawes, who replaces injured No.8 Nick Easter.
England squad
Backs
Matt Banahan (Bath), Danny Care (Harlequins), Mark Cueto (Sale), Ben Foden (Northampton), Shane Geraghty (Northampton), Andy Goode (Brive/FRA), Dan Hipkiss (Leicester), Paul Hodgson (London Irish), Ugo Monye (Harlequins), David Strettle (Harlequins), Mathew Tait (Sale), Mike Tindall (Gloucester), Richard Wigglesworth (Sale), Jonny Wilkinson (Toulon/FRA)Forwards
Steffon Armitage (London Irish), David Barnes (Bath), Duncan Bell (Bath), Richard Blaze (Leicester), Steve Borthwick (Saracens, capt), George Chuter (Leicester), Jordan Crane (Leicester), Tom Croft (Leicester), Louis Deacon (Leicester), Dylan Hartley (Northampton), James Haskell (Stade Francais/FRA), Ben Kay (Leicester), Courtney Lawes (Northampton), Lewis Moody (Leicester), Tim Payne (Wasps), Steve Thompson (Brive/FRA), David Wilson (Bath), Joe Worsley (Wasps)
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