England Under-20s captain Finn Carnduff will make his first start for Leicester Tigers in the Gallagher Premiership on Saturday when they take on Northampton Saints in the East Midlands Derby.
The 20-year-old will start in the blind at Franklin Gardens in a side that includes plenty of returning international stars after missing the Investec Champions Cup round of 16 clash with Leinster in Dublin.
Carnduff started on the bench in the 36-22 defeat at the Aviva Stadium, where he came on for the final ten minutes, but was promoted to the starting line-up by coach Dan McKellar to face the league leaders.
The player started for Leicester in the Rugby Premiership Cup, but this will be his first league match a month after starting every match in England's victorious Six Nations campaign under 20s.
The match will also see England captain Dan Cole overtake Graham Rowntree for playing the most Premier League appearances for the Tigers in his 235th league match.
Combinations
Premier League Gallagher
Northampton
Leicester
“Firstly, it's important to recognize Dan Cole's achievements,” McKellar said. “This club has a long and rich history, so for him to set a record like this is really fantastic.
“Saints are a good team in good form, and it's the derby, so there's no doubt it will be another big challenge for us.”
Leicester Tigers XV
15 Jimmy Shilcock [24]
14 Freddie Steward [84]
13 Dan Kelly [77]
12 Suleiman Kata [16]
11 Ollie Hassell Collins [18]
10 Handry Pollard [29]
9 Jack Van Poortvliet [69]
1 James Cronin [31]
2 Julian Montoya [56]
3 Dan Cole [319]
4 Harry Wells [195]
5 Ollie Chisum [54]
6 Finn Carnduff [11]
7 Tommy Revell [110]
8 Jasper Wise [75]
Replacements
16 Charlie Clare [91]
17 François van Wyk [50]
18 Will Hurd [39]
19 Kyle Hatherill [19]
20 Ollie Cracknell [39]
21 Ben Young [313]
22 Phil Kokanasija [16]
23 Mike Brown [24]
